Radiation production and energy deposition by ring current protons precipitated into the mid-latitude upper atmosphere

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In the present paper the radiation production and energy deposition by ring current protons precipitated along magnetic field lines into the mid-latitude upper atmosphere is investigated. Specifically, we are interested in protons lost from the ring current by plasma instabilities. We first determine the magnitude and sharpness of the atmospheric loss cone. We then study the behavior of the precipitated hydrogen particles in the denser atmosphere using a Monte Carlo calculation. It is found that the energy deposition and radiation production will critically depend on how far the ring current protons diffuse into the loss cone before being neutralized in the atmosphere; this in turn will depend on the strength of the plasma turbulence in the ring current belt region.