loading page

Fast Magnetic Field Annihilation in Magnetotail Electron-scale Current Sheet
  • +19
  • Hiroshi Hasegawa,
  • Richard E. Denton,
  • Takuma Nakamura,
  • Kevin J Genestreti,
  • Tai-Duc Phan,
  • Rumi Nakamura,
  • Kyoung-Joo Hwang,
  • Narges Ahmadi,
  • Quanqi Shi,
  • Michael Hesse,
  • James L Burch,
  • James Webster,
  • Roy B. Torbert,
  • Barbara L. Giles,
  • Daniel J Gershman,
  • Christopher T. Russell,
  • Robert J. Strangeway,
  • H. Y. Wei,
  • Per-Arne Lindqvist,
  • Yuri V. Khotyaintsev,
  • Robert E Ergun,
  • Yoshifumi Saito
Hiroshi Hasegawa
Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, JAXA

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

Author Profile
Richard E. Denton
Dartmouth College
Author Profile
Takuma Nakamura
Institute of Physics, University of Graz
Author Profile
Kevin J Genestreti
Southwest Research Institute
Author Profile
Tai-Duc Phan
UC Berkeley
Author Profile
Rumi Nakamura
Space Research Institute
Author Profile
Kyoung-Joo Hwang
Southwest Research Institute
Author Profile
Narges Ahmadi
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder
Author Profile
Quanqi Shi
Shandong University, Weihai
Author Profile
Michael Hesse
University of Bergen
Author Profile
James L Burch
Southwest Research Institute
Author Profile
James Webster
Southwest Research Institute
Author Profile
Roy B. Torbert
University of New Hampshire
Author Profile
Barbara L. Giles
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Author Profile
Daniel J Gershman
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Author Profile
Christopher T. Russell
University of California Los Angeles
Author Profile
Robert J. Strangeway
University of California Los Angeles
Author Profile
H. Y. Wei
University of California Los Angeles
Author Profile
Per-Arne Lindqvist
KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Author Profile
Yuri V. Khotyaintsev
Swedish Institute of Space Physics
Author Profile
Robert E Ergun
Univeristy of Colorado
Author Profile
Yoshifumi Saito
Institute of Space & Astronautical Science
Author Profile

Abstract

We present observations in Earth’s magnetotail by the Magnetospheric Multiscale spacecraft that are consistent with magnetic field annihilation, rather than magnetic topology change, causing fast magnetic-to-electron energy conversion in an elongated electron-scale current sheet. This energy conversion process is in contrast to that in the standard electron diffusion region (EDR) of a reconnecting current sheet where the energy of antiparallel magnetic fields is mostly converted to electron bulk-flow energy. Fully kinetic simulation also demonstrates that an elongated EDR is subject to the formation of electron-scale magnetic islands in which fast energy conversion is dominated by the annihilation. Consistent with the observations and simulation, theoretical analysis shows that fast magnetic diffusion can occur in an elongated EDR in the presence of nongyrotropic electron effects. The discovery of the annihilation-dominated EDR reveals a new form of energy conversion in the collisionless reconnection process.