抄録
Recent measurements and simulations of core or low-energy plasma phenomena have elucidated features of particle distributions which transcend the somewhat limited physical insights available from simple bulk parameter (density, flow velocity, temperature, etc.) descriptions alone. Two of the exciting new observational areas include: (1) Core ion measurements which display a new type of distribution function, the ion ring distribution, which may be produced by coherent waves and/or ion-neutral relative convective drift; and (2) A statistical analysis of core ion distribution functions, in which a programmed pattern recognition technique is used to objectively characterize the vast quantity of ion pitch angle distributions observed by Dynamics Explorer-1 and sort them and their properties according to location and geomagnetic activity level. Important areas of advances in simulation of large-scale transport of core plasmas include: (1) A new, self-consistent time-dependent particle-in-cell simulation of polar plasma outflow; and (2) A kinetic simulation of the early-stage plasmasphere refilling process, in which injected particles from conjugate polar wind flows onto a evacuated closed flux tube are allowed to suffer effects of turbulent heating and pitch angle scattering.
