Simultaneous high- and low-latitude reconnection: ESR and DMSP observations

• Main Authors: Pitout, F., Newell, P. T., Buchert, S. C.
• Other Authors: Swedish Institute of Space Physics Kiruna (IRF), Centre d'étude spatiale des rayonnements (CESR), Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (OMP), Météo France-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Météo France-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory Laurel, MD (APL)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2002
• Subjects: [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean; Atmosphere; [SDU.STU]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences; Svalbard; Svalbard Archipelago; EISCAT
• Online Access: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00329273; https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00329273/document; https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00329273/file/angeo-20-1311-2002.pdf

International audience We present EISCAT Svalbard Radar and DMSP observations of a double cusp during an interval of predominantly northward IMF on 26 November 2000. In the cusp region, the ESR dish, pointing northward, recorded sun-ward ionospheric flow at high latitudes (above 82° GL), indicating reconnection occuring in the magnetospheric lobe. Meanwhile, the same dish also recorded bursts of poleward flow, indicative of bursty reconnection at the subsolar magnetopause. Within this time interval, the DMSP F13 satellite passed in the close vicinity of the Svalbard archipelago. The particle measurement on board exhibited a double cusp structure in which two oppositely oriented ion dispersions are recorded. We interpret this set of data in terms of simultaneous merging at low- and high-latitude magnetopause. We discuss the conditions for which such simultaneous high-latitude and low-latitude reconnection can be anticipated. We also discuss the consequences of the presence of two X-lines in the dayside polar ionosphere. Key words. Magnetospheric physics (solar wind-magnetosphere interactions) – Ionosphere (polar ionosphere; plasma convection)