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Lower-Hybrid Wave-Induced Plasma Mixing related to Kelvin-Helmholtz Vortices during Southward IMF
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  • Kevin Alexander Blasl,
  • Adriana Settino,
  • Rumi Nakamura,
  • Hiroshi Hasegawa,
  • Takuma Nakamura,
  • Martin Hosner
Kevin Alexander Blasl
Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Adriana Settino
Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences
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Rumi Nakamura
Space Research Institute
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Hiroshi Hasegawa
Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, JAXA
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Takuma Nakamura
Institute of Physics, University of Graz
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Martin Hosner
Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences
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Abstract

We examine characteristics of the boundaries of 11 Kelvin-Helmholtz vortex crossings observed by MMS on September 23, 2017 under southward IMF conditions. At both the leading and trailing edges, boundary regions of mixed plasma are observed together with lower-hybrid wave activity. We found that thicker boundary regions feature a higher number of sub-ion scale current sheets, of which only one shows clear reconnection signatures. Moreover, the lower-hybrid waves along the vortex spine region are identified as an effective mechanism for plasma transport with an estimated diffusion coefficient of D ≈ 109 m2/s. Comparisons with 3D simulations performed under the same conditions as the MMS event suggest that the extension of the boundary regions as well as the number of current sheets are related to different evolutionary stages of the vortices. Such observations can be explained by changes in the upstream magnetic field conditions.
08 Aug 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive
08 Aug 2024Published in ESS Open Archive