Whistler mode waves in the Jovian magnetosheath

Abstract

During the Ulysses flyby of Jupiter in February 1992, the spacecraft traversed the Jovian magnetosheath for a few hours during the inbound pass and for a few days during the outbound pass. Burstlike electromagnetic waves at frequencies of ∼0.1‐0.4 of the local electron cyclotron frequency have been observed by the Unified Radio and Plasma Wave (URAP) experiment. The waves were more often observed in the regions which were probably the outer or middle magnetosheath, especially near the bow shock, and rarely seen in the magnetosphere/magnetosheath boundary layer. The propagation angles of the waves are estimated by comparing the measurements of the wave electric and magnetic fields in the spacecraft spin plane with the corresponding values calculated using the cold plasma dispersion relation under local field and plasma conditions. It is found that the waves propagate obliquely with wave angles between ∼30° and 50°. These waves are likely to be the whistler mode waves which are excited by suprathermal electrons with a few hundred eV and a slight anisotropy (T⊥/T∥ ∼1.1‐1.5). They are probably similar in nature to the lion roars observed in the Earth's magnetosheath. Signature of coupling between the mirror mode and the whistler mode have also been observed. The plasma conditions which favor the excitation of the whistler mode instability during the wave events exist as observed by the plasma experiment of Ulysses.