Abstract
Abstract. The aims of this paper are (1) briefly to describe the plasma devices onboard the MAGION-4 satellite, launched on 3 August 1995, of the INTERBALL project, and (2) to discuss first observations made near the magnetopause region. During the presented boundary crossings the MAGION-4 observed quasi-periodic pulses of magnetosheath-like plasma in a region of low plasma density. This region is located just earthwards of the magnetopause and is populated by a plasma which, except for the density, has the same parameters as in the magnetosheath. Deeper in the magnetosphere, the encounter of a layer of hot electrons and high-energy ions was interpreted as low-latitude boundary layer.
Highlights
The Earth’s magnetopause lies at the locus of points where magnetosheath and magnetospheric pressures balance
The present paper introduces the measurements in the magnetopause region performed by a set of plasma instruments onboard the MAGION-4 INTERBALL subsatellite
We cannot complete our observation by the reliable magnetic field measurements taken on the MAGION-4 satellite because its SGR magnetometer was designed for comparative measurements only
Summary
The Earth’s magnetopause lies at the locus of points where magnetosheath and magnetospheric pressures balance. Sibeck et al (1990) showed that FTEs [flux transfer events (Russell and Elphic, 1978)] are fully consistent with the properties of magnetosheath magnetic field line draping in the plasma depletion layer, and they presented a model for the signatures of magnetopause motion driven by such solar-wind dynamic-pressure variations. Phan and Paschmann (1996) introduces the magnetic shear (the angle between magnetic-field vectors inside and just outside the magnetopause) for the classification of the magnetopause crossings This classification respects the fact that the IMF can change its direction in front of the magnetopause due to the turbulent motion of the magnetosheath plasma. Phan and Paschmann (1996) define the magnetopause as the beginning of the magnetic-field rotation and the inner edge of the LLBL as the point where the plasma density decreases to 5% of the magnetosheath value. The set consists of two experiments: the VDP-S plasma sensor is dedicated to the fast determi-
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