Calculation of the extreme ultraviolet radiation of the earth’s plasmasphere

Abstract

The dynamic global core plasma model (DGCPM) is used in this paper to calculate the He+ density distribution of the Earth’s plasmasphere and to investigate the configurations and 30.4 nm radiation properties of the plasmasphere. Validation comparisons between the simulation results and IMAGE mission observations show: That the equatorial structure of the plasmapause is mainly located near 5.5 RE and the typical scale of plasmasphere shrinking or expansion within 10 min is approximately 0.1 RE; that the plasmaspheric shoulders are formed and rotate noon-ward from the dawn sector under the conditions of strong southward turning of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF); that the plasmaspheric plumes will rotate dawn-ward from the night sector and become narrow for the southward turning of the IMF. The simulated images from the lunar orbit show that the plasmasphere locating within the geocentric distance of 5.5 RE corresponds to field of view (FOV) of 10.7°×10.7° for the moon-based EUV imager, and that the 30.4 nm radiation intensity of the plasmasphere is 0.1–11.4 R. The plasmaspheric shoulders and plumes locating toward the moon-side are for the first time simulated with typical scale level of 0.1 RE from the side view of the moon. These simulated results provide an important theoretical basis for the lunar-based EUV camera design.