Measurement of inner radiation belt electrons with kinetic energy above 1 MeV

Abstract

AbstractData from the Proton‐Electron Telescope on the Solar, Anomalous, and Magnetospheric Particle Explorer (SAMPEX) satellite, taken during 1992–2009, are analyzed for evidence of inner radiation belt electrons with kinetic energy E > 1 MeV. It is found that most of the data from a detector combination with a nominal energy threshold of 1 MeV were, in fact, caused by a chance coincidence response to lower energy electrons or high‐energy protons. In particular, there was no detection of inner belt or slot region electrons above 1 MeV following the 2003 Halloween storm injection, though they may have been present. However, by restricting data to a less‐stable, low‐altitude trapping region, a persistent presence of inner belt electrons in the energy range 1 to 1.6 MeV is demonstrated. Their soft, exponential energy spectra are consistent with extrapolation of lower energy measurements.