Abstract
AbstractIn evaluating the effects of fast magnetosonic (MS) waves on magnetospheric particles, their magnetic spectra are often obtained from satellite observations, while electric field components are usually derived under the cold plasma approximation. However, such an approximation has not been verified with in situ observations yet. In this study, we report the electromagnetic characteristic for MS waves in various plasma environments with observations of the Van Allen Probe A. It is found that a considerable number of observed MS waves consist of dominated electrostatic components, which also suggest the importance of inspecting the estimation algorithm for the electric field components. Moreover, the comparison between results from statistical and theoretical analysis shows that electromagnetic characteristics of the observed MS waves can be well predicted by cold plasma theory. Our result indicates the validation of cold plasma approximation to estimate the electric field components of MS waves from their magnetic counterparts in the inner magnetosphere.
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