Composition measurements in the dusk flank magnetosphere

Abstract

The dusk flank magnetosphere exhibits significant structure. Several regions have been identified, including the plasma sheet, mantle, and low latitude boundary layer. Transitions from one region to the next, for example from the mantle to the plasma sheet, can be abrupt or indistinct. In addition, the density within the flank mantle can range over several orders of magnitude. Although there is significant structure in this region of the magnetosphere, individual regions often can be distinguished by their energy spectra and ion composition. ISEE Fast Plasma Experiment and Plasma Composition Experiment data are used to examine the composition of the mantle and to study a set of transitions from the mantle to the plasma sheet where plasmas with mantle‐like and plasma sheet‐like energies mix. This study indicates that the variability of the mantle density is largely due to variability in the solar wind component (H+ and He2+); the ionospheric plasma (O+) density is roughly constant. Similarly, the plasma with mantle‐like energy found in the mixed region is largely of solar wind origin.