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Erlandson et al. 1988
Erlandson, R.E., Zanetti, L.J., Potemra, T.A., Bythrow, P.F. and Lundin, R. (1988). IMF By dependence of region 1 Birkeland currents near noon. Journal of Geophysical Research 93: doi: 10.1029/88JA03102. issn: 0148-0227.

We have conducted a statistical study of large-scale Birkeland currents, hot plasma, and the By component of the interplanetary magnetic field. Forty-eight Viking orbits from July 19, 1986, to September 2, 1986, were used in the study during a time period when the 3-RE geocentric apogee was located near the dayside high-latitude region usually associated with the polar cusp. We first compared the location of magnetosheathlike electrons to the region 1 and ''traditional cusp'' Birkeland current systems near noon. It was found that the region 1 Birkeland current system was colocated with the region of most intense magnetosheathlike electron flux. We therefore infer that the ''tradional cusp'' current system, located poleward of the region 1 system, is associated with field lines that extend to the plasma mantle in the outer magnetosphere. Using this same data base a statistical study between the By component of the IMF and the flow direction of the region 1 Birkeland current system as a function of magnetic local time was performed. We determined that the flow direction of the region 1 current system near noon depends on the By component of IMF. The meridian that separates the dawnside and duskside region 1 Birkeland currents shifted to magnetic local times before noon when By was less than 0 nT, and to the afternoon when By was greater than 0 nT. The extent of the shift away from noon was dependent on the magnitude of the IMF By component. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1988

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Abstract

Keywords
Magnetospheric Physics, Current systems, Magnetospheric Physics, Magnetopause, cusp, and boundary layers
Journal
Journal of Geophysical Research
http://www.agu.org/journals/jb/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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