LASP Magnetosphere Seminars

We present a physically motivated analytic framework for estimating solar wind mass-loading rates from ion sources using a simplified ‘Particles in a Box’ (PIB) model. By applying conservation of energy and conservation of magnetic flux, we derive a general equation for the global pick-up ion rate that explicitly accounts for …

Solar wind turbulence has been observed in-situ over decades with single spacecraft, and now we have high quality observations from 1AU to within the orbit of Mercury, and from multiple spacecraft flotilla. Two approaches to the data are: Using the observed phenomena – solar wind turbulence – as an experiment: …

Accurate magnetic field measurements are essential for advancing modern space physics as well as satellite design and operations. Future space exploration will benefit from highly sensitive, compact magnetometers capable of covering a broad frequency range. For the past sixty years, two main magnetometer types have been used on space missions: …

Precursor solitons, predicted by theory to arise when a charged object moves through plasma above a critical velocity, are experimentally observed. These ion-acoustic solitons form ahead of the object and propagate faster than it, providing an early indication of its motion. Experiments were conducted in the Space Plasma Simulation Chamber …