The Formation of the Ring Current in Multi-Scale Simulations  
 

Liutauras Rusaitis
Postdoctorate
The Catholic University of America
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Wed, February 14, 2024 - 4:00 PM

The ring current consists of charged particles that drift around the Earth in the inner magnetosphere under the influence of electric and magnetic fields. The particles in the ring current predominantly originate from Earth’s magnetotail, but the proportion varies with geomagnetic activity. In this talk, we present the first results of a fully kinetic energy-conserving particle-in-cell simulation code that shows the formation of a partial ring current and particle dynamics from the tail reconnection region to the inner magnetosphere. Our results show an inward propagation of bursty bulk flows (BBFs) that are likely a significant source of energetic particles for the inner magnetosphere. We discuss the likely acceleration mechanisms for the ring-current particles and upcoming investigations that can detail the dynamics of the ring current and the magnetotail.

Refreshments served at 3:45 PM

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