Highlight of the 1st EGS Alfvén Conference

on

³Low-Altitude Investigation of Dayside Magnetospheric Boundary Processes² 


		Held in honour of Hannes Alfvén

		Date:   9-13 September, 1996, 
		Place:  Kiruna, Sweden

Goal 

(1) Opportunity for new collaboration.

(2) Examine dangerous assumptions 
		for measurements and modeling.
		=> Series of Discussion Hours

(3) Hot topics.


For more information

Web :			http://www.irf.se/conference

FTP :			epac.irf.se  (anonymous)
				pub/conference     directory

Summary :	Eos March 25, 1997   issue

Proceedings :	on Phys. Chem. Earth



The 2nd EGS Alfvén Conference

Topic : 	"Acceleration Processes"

Date : 		spring-summer 1998 

Place :	near Stockholm, Sweden

Contact :	alfven-conf2@plasma.kth.se 


Discussion Hours

Discussion 1   What do we mean by "merging/reconnection"?

Vasyliunas  "Merging = Reconnection = Rotational discontinuity"  
Axford        "Change of topology"

Ex. of question: How should we call plasma injection across the 
			    magnetopause without magnetic neutral region?


Discussion 2   Alternatives for plasma entry mechanisms

Diffusion theory / Reconnection theory do not account for some plasma injection phenomena at low-altitude.


Discussion 3   Convection and velocity filter

May we map the physical quantities along the convecting geomagnetic field beyond high-latitude cusp?  

³Flux tube² cannot always be defined in multicomponent plasma.


Discussion 4   Mapping 

Everybody has different identification (definition) of "open/closed" boundary (separatrix) at low-altitudes.  


Discussion 5   Restriction (Alfvén's favorite!)

MHD approximation is no longer valid in the high-altitude cusp.  


Discussion 6   Q & A session


Discussion 7   New tools and future method 

We have to create a reliable database (SW, IMF, geomagnetic field, etc.) as a heritage to future generations.  

	=> We need real volunteers and low-cost operation
Q & A session 

* Identification of different plasma injection mechanisms
	How many different types of injections are observed?
	Bursty (transient) injections Ð=> Steady injections?

* The low-altitude satellite vs. ground-based
	Satellite => high resolution, distinguish different injections
	Ground-based tools => separation of spatial-temporal
=>
	We need to relate between satellites-detected phenomena 
	and ground measure phenomena

* The cusp location controlled by IMF-By
	By>0 : 	postnoon => particle cusp, midday gap
			prenoon  => cusp aurora, active field region
=>
Don't mix up

* Midday aurora gap
	Is it real or an artifact of sensitivity problem?

* Mapping
	³Can we monitor the equatorial region from low-altitude?² 
	We know so little about the high-altitude cusp (with weak 
		|B| and strong gradient). => One may arbitrarily map 
		the low-altitude cusp to more than one location.
		(e.g., high-altitude cusp, subsolar region, 
			  dawn-dusk flank, near-Earth tail) 
	Effects of charge neutrality, kinetics, and pressure gradients  

=> We need CLUSTER

Without CLUSTER, it is difficult to identify low-altitude phenomena as signatures of ³corresponding² magnetospheric boundary processes.   
On dangerous assumptions


Solar wind parameters are sometimes not uniform in the scale length of only tens of Earth radii.  


Transient and bursty ionospheric phenomena are not necessarily the signatures of the magnetopause FTEs (aside the problem that FTE is very loosely defined).


Using the 6300Å red line emission to identify the cusp might be dangerous because of its long relaxation time.  


Meso-scale structures of particle injections in the cusp restrict both the velocity filter theory and standard models for mapping. 


Cross-field potential drop (F^) is different at 10 Re and 2 Re.


Energetic particles cannot be used to identify open or closed geomagnetic field lines in a simple manner.  


Ionospheric and ground effects add strong non-MHD effects to the injected disturbances.  


It is dangerous to simply apply 2-D model to real 3-D configuration.



Other hot topics 

(1) Ionospheric convection

	* TCV is located deep within the inner magnetosphere

	* Quick response of large-scale convection to SW

	* Two major sources for the large-scale convection

(2) Aurora

	* Poleward Moving Auroral Forms 
	   (repetition time, longitudinal extent, its SW response)  

	* Luminosity gap equatorward of the cusp

	* East-west motion of polar arcs

	* Relation to the open-close boundary 

(3) Wave

	* In the cusp and in the cleft

	* Global Mode pulsation  

(4) Particle

	* In the cusp and in the cleft

	* Relation to wave, field, and field-aligned currents

	* Bi-directional field-aligned electrons and escaping ions

	* Polar rain: its relation to the open-closed boundary   

	* Two major injection regions in the cusp when IMF Bz „ 0

(5) New techniques

	* Neural network

	* Imaging technique using neutral particles and XUV