Related papers: Electron-only Reconnection in Ion-scale Current Sh…
Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental plasma process that alters the magnetic field topology and releases magnetic energy. Most numerical simulations and spacecraft observations assume a two-dimensional diffusion region, with the electron…
Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) encountered the primary low-latitude magnetopause reconnection site when the inter-spacecraft separation exceeded the upstream ion inertial length. Classical signatures of the ion diffusion region (IDR),…
The Electron Diffusion Region (EDR) is the region where magnetic reconnection is initiated and electrons are energized. Because of experimental difficulties, the structure of the EDR is still poorly understood. A key question is whether the…
The solar wind is a continuous outflow of charged particles from the Sun's atmosphere into the solar system. At Earth, the solar wind's outward pressure is balanced by the Earth's magnetic field in a boundary layer known as the…
Dayside magnetic reconnection allows for the transfer of the solar wind's energy into Earth's magnetosphere. This process takes place in electron diffusion regions (EDRs) embedded in ion diffusion regions (IDRs), which form in the…
We have used the high-resolution data of the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission dayside phase to identify twenty-one previously unreported encounters with the electron diffusion region (EDR), as evidenced by electron agyrotropy, ion…
Motivated by recent observations of "electron-only" magnetic reconnection, without an ion-scale sheet or ion outflows, in both the Earth's magnetosheath and in numerical simulations, we study the formation and reconnection of electron-scale…
A new look at the structure of the electron diffusion region in collisionless magnetic reconnection is presented. The research is based on a particle-in-cell simulation of asymmetric magnetic reconnection, which include a temperature…
We derive, and validate numerically, an analytical model for electron-only magnetic reconnection applicable to strongly magnetized plasmas. Our model predicts sub-ion-scale reconnection rates significantly higher than those pertaining to…
During magnetic reconnection in collisionless space plasma, the electron fluid decouples from the magnetic field within narrow current layers, and theoretical models for this process can be distinguished in terms of their predicted current…
Magnetic reconnection is an explosive energy-release process in laboratory, space and astrophysical plasmas. While magnetic fields can `break' and `reconnect' in a very small region called the electron diffusion region (EDR), there have…
Collisionless space plasma turbulence can generate reconnecting thin current sheets as suggested by recent results of numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations. The MMS mission provides the first serious opportunity to check if small…
Using observations of Earth's bow shock by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, we show for the first time that active magnetic reconnection is occurring at current sheets embedded within the quasi-parallel shock's transition layer. We…
We report in situ observations of an electron diffusion region (EDR) and adjacent separatrix region. We observe significant magnetic field oscillations near the lower hybrid frequency which propagate perpendicularly to the reconnection…
Magnetic reconnection is an energy conversion process important in many astrophysical contexts including the Earth's magnetosphere, where the process can be investigated in-situ. Here we present the first encounter of a reconnection site by…
Magnetic reconnection often initiates abruptly and then rapidly progresses to a nonlinear quasi-steady state. While satellites frequently detect reconnection events, ascertaining whether the system has achieved steady-state or is still…
Particle in cell (PIC) simulations of collisionless magnetic reconnection are presented that demonstrate that the electron dissipation region develops a distinct two-scale structure along the outflow direction. The length of the electron…
Using kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, we simulate reconnection conditions appropriate for the magnetosheath and solar wind, i.e., plasma beta (ratio of gas pressure to magnetic pressure) greater than 1 and low magnetic shear…
We present particle-in-cell simulations of collisionless magnetic reconnection in a system (like the magnetopause) with a large density asymmetry across the current layer. In the presence of an ambient component of the magnetic field…
We report evidence of magnetic reconnection in the transition region of the terrestrial bow shock when the angle between the shock normal and the immediate upstream magnetic field is 65 degrees. An ion-skin-depth-scale current sheet…