Publication Date:
2016-03-17
Description:
We present multi-mission observations of field-aligned currents, auroral oval, and magnetopause crossings during the March 17, 2015 magnetic storm. Dayside reconnection is expected to transport magnetic flux, strengthen field-aligned currents, lead to polar cap expansion and magnetopause erosion. Our multi-mission observations assemble evidence for all these manifestations. After a prolonged period of strongly southward interplanetary magnetic field, Swarm and AMPERE observe significant intensification of field-aligned currents. The dayside auroral oval, as seen by DMSP, appears as a thin arc associated with ongoing dayside reconnection. Both the field-aligned currents and the auroral arc move equatorward reaching as low as ~60° MLat. Strong magnetopause erosion is evident in the in-situ measurements of the magnetopause crossings by GOES-13/15 and MMS. The coordinated Swarm, AMPERE, DMSP, MMS and GOES observations, with both global and in-situ coverage of the key regions, provide a clear demonstration of the effects of dayside reconnection on the entire magnetosphere.
Print ISSN:
0094-8276
Electronic ISSN:
1944-8007
Topics:
Geosciences
,
Physics
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