loading page

Properties of plasmoids observed in Saturn's dayside and nightside magnetodisc
  • +7
  • Yan Xu,
  • Ruilong Guo,
  • Zhonghua Yao,
  • Dong-Xiao Pan,
  • William Dunn,
  • Shengyi Ye,
  • Binzheng Zhang,
  • Yixin Sun,
  • Yong Wei,
  • Andrew J Coates
Yan Xu
Peking University
Author Profile
Ruilong Guo
University of liege
Author Profile
Zhonghua Yao
Chinese Academy of Sciences

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

Author Profile
Dong-Xiao Pan
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Author Profile
William Dunn
University College London
Author Profile
Shengyi Ye
Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), Shenzhen, China
Author Profile
Binzheng Zhang
The University of Hong Kong
Author Profile
Yixin Sun
Peking University
Author Profile
Yong Wei
Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Author Profile
Andrew J Coates
University College London
Author Profile

Abstract

Plasmoid is a key process for transferring magnetic flux and plasma in planetary magnetospheres. At Earth,plasmoid is a key media transferring energy and mass in the “Dungey Cycle” magnetospheric circulation. For giant planets, plasmoid is primarily generated by the dynamic processes associated with “Vasyliunas Cycle”. It is generally believed that planetary magnetotails are favourable for producing plasmoids. Nevertheless, recent study reveals that magnetic field lines could be sufficiently stretched to allow magnetic reconnection (Guo et al. 2018a) in Saturn’s dayside magnetodisc. And in the study, we report direct observations of plasmoid in Saturn’s dayside magnetodisc. Moreover, we perform a statistical investigation on the global plasmoid electron density distribution. The results show an inverse correlation between the nightside plasmoid electron density and local time, and the maximum plasmoid electron density around prenoon local time on the dayside. These results are consistent with the magnetospheric circulation picture associated with“Vasyliunas Cycle”.
28 Dec 2021Published in Geophysical Research Letters volume 48 issue 24. 10.1029/2021GL096765