Energy storage and dissipation in the magnetotail during substorms. 1. Particle simulations

The authors present a simulation study of the particle dynamics in the magnetotail during the development of substorms. They look at how energy flows into the magnetotail under external magnetospheric conditions, and study the energy storage and dissipation in the magnetic field, and the role of particle dynamics in this process. They consider two primary external influences in their model. First is the pressure exerted by the magnetospheric boundary layer, on the nightside magnetopause. This pressure is expected to grow in response to solar wind penetration into the magnetosphere when the interplanetary magnetic field becomes southward in the initial phases of substorm growth. Second is the dawn to dusk electric field. This field is expected to grow as the current sheet thins and energy stored in the magnetic field rises. The authors argue that the simultaneous increase in both the magnetic pressure and electric field can better model magnetotail response. One sees strong earthward flows in conjunction with increased energy storage in the tail, and at substorm onset one sees the ejection of plasmoids in a tailward direction with increased particle heating. The clumping of particles in the current sheet due to the opposing effects of the magnetic pressure and electric field could be responsible for substorm onset, rather than instabilities such as the tearing mode