Ion heat flux and energy transport near the magnetotail neutral sheet

Abstract

Ten‐year averages of energy transport rates near the neutral sheet showed that the enthalpy flux density or thermal energy term QT = (5/2)PV was the largest, where P is the isotropic pressure and V is the bulk flow velocity. The ion heat flux, qi, was the next largest term. Sorting data using a magnetic flux transport parameter showed that qi could become dominant during periods of slow flow. Both qi and the ion bulk velocity Vi were duskward on the dusk side of the neutral sheet. This relationship is characteristic of cross‐tail drift and a heat flux that can be attributed to the energy dependent gradient and curvature drifts. The qi and Vi vectors often pointed in different directions on the dawn side. The x component of qi on the dawn side pointed tailward, suggesting entry through the magnetopause of a suprathermal ion component. On the dusk side the qix plots that were sorted using a magnetic flux transport parameter showed evidence of plasma sheet reconnection. The long‐term averaged x component of QT pointed earthward almost everywhere in the neutral sheet, and was attributed to periods of very fast plasma flow. The cross‐tail component of QT was separated into two contributions. One part of QTy involved a common drift away from midnight during both earthward and tailward fast flows. This feature suggests that thermal energy and plasma flow from the outer plasma sheet toward the neutral sheet near midnight, and then toward the flanks. The other part of QTy involved a differential duskward drift during fast earthward flows and a dawnward drift during fast tailward flows. The incremental E fields that would produce such convection point tailward during the fastest earthward flows and earthward during the fastest tailward flows. The dependencies of Vi, qi and QT on the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) clock angle also were studied. Both Vi and QT were reduced when the IMF was northward and the neutral sheet plasma became cold and dense. However, no dependence of qi on the IMF direction was seen. This shows that the generation of a cold dense plasma sheet does not substantially change the distribution of the suprathermal ions that are most important in the production of qi.