Abstract

The variations in the fluxes of the relativistic electrons in the planetary radiation belts are due to a set of different physical processes which violate one or more of the adiabatic invariants. We survey the mechanisms which break down these invariants and investigate the time scales for the processes and the resulting effects on the observed fluxes. The mechanisms include (a) sudden deformation of the magnetic field configuration, (b) radial diffusion due to low-frequency electromagnetic oscillations, (c) transit-time damping due to fast waves and (d) diffusion due to electromagnetic ion-cyclotron (emic) or whistler waves. It is indicated how the waves which interact resonantly with the relativistic electrons are responsible for enhancement in the radiative spectra of the gyrosynchrotron emissions in the GHz frequency range and the X-ray bremsstrahlung emissions at the MeV energy range.

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