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Moen et al. 1999

Moen, J., Carlson, H.C. and Sandholt, P.E. (1999). Continuous observation of cusp auroral dynamics in response to an IMF B_Y polarity change. Geophysical Research Letters 26: doi: 10.1029/1999GL900224. issn: 0094-8276.

The IMF BY control of the motion pattern and the location of cusp auroral activity has been continuously monitored in a case when the BY component of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) went from -15 nT to +15 nT in the course of 20 minutes. This is the first time a direct observation of an IMF BY regulated shift in the longitudinal position of the auroral cusp has been documented. The IMF BY regulation of the cusp is regarded to be a unique signature of magnetopause reconnection. In this particular case the zonal shift of the cusp center is estimated to be at least 3 hours in magnetic local time. The observations indicate that the cusp reconfigured within a few minutes after the BY polarity change imposed on the magnetopause. ¿ 1999 American Geophysical Union

BACKGROUND DATA FILES

	Abstract

Keywords
Magnetospheric Physics, Solar wind/magnetosphere interactions, Space Plasma Physics, Magnetic reconnection

Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
http://www.agu.org/journals/gl/

Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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