Global Hybrid Simulation of Kinetic Alfven Waves Associated with Magnetotail Reconnection and Fast Flows

Abstract

It is believed Alfven waves, and particularly kinetic Alfven waves (KAWs), play an important role in the coupling between the solar wind and the magnetosphere. Although KAWs have been observed in the magnetotail and ionosphere, their generation mechanisms and global transport properties are still unclear. A global process with interconnection among various regions of the magnetosphere, driven self-consistently by the solar wind, is poorly understood because of the limitations of local codes. We use the 3-D global hybrid code, i.e., Auburn Global Hybrid Code in 3-D (ANGIE3D) to reveal the global structure of KAWs from the magnetotail to the ionosphere for the first time.