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Detailed Reference Information
Kuznetsova et al. 1994
Kuznetsova, M.M., Roth, M., Wang, Z. and Ashour-Abdalla, M. (1994). Effect of the relative flow velocity on the structure and stability of the magnetopause current layer. Journal of Geophysical Research 99: doi: 10.1029/93JA02358. issn: 0148-0227.

The Vlasov kinetic approach is used to study the stability of the magnetopause current layer (MCL) when a sheared flow velocity and a sheared magnetic field both exist simultaneously within it. A modified Harris-Sestero equilibrium where the magnetic field and bulk velocity are changing direction on the same spatial scale is suggested to illustrate the generation of a y component of the magnetic field in the center of the MCL. With this equilibrium it is shown that By(0) can be of the order of Bz(∞) when the value of the shear flow (U) tends to the ion drift velocity (Ud). The modifications of the initial symmetrical Harris configuration, introduced by the presence of shear flow, strongly influence the adiabatic interaction of the plasma with low-frequency tearing-type electromagnetic perturbations as well as the nonadiabatic response of the particles near the center of the MCL. This results in a reduction of the growth rate of the tearing mode.

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Abstract

Keywords
Magnetospheric Physics, Magnetopause, cusp, and boundary layers, Magnetospheric Physics, Current systems, Magnetospheric Physics, MHD waves and instabilities, Space Plasma Physics, Kinetic and MHD theory
Journal
Journal of Geophysical Research
http://www.agu.org/journals/jb/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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