Coupling Processes in the Inner Magnetosphere: Inner Magnetosphere Coupling (IMC) Workshop; Espoo, Finland, 28 July to 1 August 2008

Abstract

In recent years, satellite measurements (e.g., Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES); Imager for Magnetopause‐to‐Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE); Polar; Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO); Cluster; Solar Anomalous and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX); and Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions During Substorms (THEMIS)) and theoretical and modeling studies have significantly advanced the understanding of the dynamics of various plasma populations in the inner magnetosphere. Observations and modeling have revealed that the dynamics of the inner magnetospheric plasma populations not only depend on solar wind conditions but also are coupled to each other bymeans of the electromagnetic field, currents, and wave‐particle interactions.The understanding of coupling processes between the plasmasphere, ring current, radiation belts, magnetic field, and waves was the subject of discussion at the recent Inner Magnetospheric Coupling (IMC) workshop, which brought together more than 50 researchers studying various plasma populations and processes that may influence the inner magnetosphere, as well as the effects of the inner magnetosphere on the ionosphere, atmosphere, and global magnetospheric interactions.