Measurements of ions from three different instruments on the IMP-7 and 8 spacecraft are combined to yield with differential energy spectra of ions over the entire energy range of ~100 eV to 4 MeV in the earth's distant (~30 to ~40 Re) plasma sheet. These spectra, obtained during times of relatively small bulk flow velocities, span the intensity range from ~10-5 to 105 (cm2sec sr keV)-1, varying smoothly over the entire energy range both when the plasma is cold (~1 keV) and hot (~9 keV). Overall, the shape of the spectrum resembles a Maxwellian but with a high energy (>50 keV) tail described well by a power law (∝E-7). The high energy tail is displaced in a parallel fashion to higher or lower intensities when the plasma is hot or cold, respectively. The transition between the Maxwellian and the power law occurs at E?(&ggr;+1)kT. It is found that the energetic particle populations in the plasma sheet appear to be directly related to the mean thermal energies of the corresponding plasmas.