Local heating of radiation belt electrons to ultra-relativistic energies.

ABSTRACT: Electrically charged particles are trapped by the Earth's magnetic field, forming the Van Allen radiation belts. Observations show that electrons in this region can have energies in excess of 7 MeV. However, whether electrons at these ultra-relativistic energies are locally accelerated, arise from betatron and Fermi acceleration due to transport across the magnetic field, or if a combination of both mechanisms is required, has remained an unanswered question in radiation belt physics. Here, we present a unique way of analyzing satellite observations which demonstrates that local acceleration is capable of heating electrons up to 7 MeV. By considering the evolution of phase space density peaks in magnetic coordinate space, we observe distinct signatures of local acceleration and the subsequ

SUBMITTER: Allison HJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7483540 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature