Wiggs, Josh and Arridge, Chris (2020) Modelling Plasma Transport at the Outer Planets using a Kinetic-Ion, Fluid-Electron Approach - Validation and Initial Results. In: AGU Fall Meeting 2020, 2020-12-01 - 2020-12-17, Virtual.
Full text not available from this repository.Abstract
The Jovian magnetosphere is loaded internally with material from the volcanic moon of Io, this is ionised and brought into co-rotation to form the Io plasma torus. Plasma is removed from the torus mainly via ejection as energetic neutrals and by bulk transport into sink regions in the outer magnetosphere. The physical process generally considered to be responsible for bulk transport is the centrifugal-interchange instability, this allows magnetic flux tubes containing hot, tenuous plasma to exchange places with tubes containing cool, dense plasma, moving material from the inner to outer magnetosphere whilst returning magnetic flux to the planet. Although modelling often assumes a diffusive type process to attempt to examine this process, in this work we have developed a full hybrid kinetic-ion, fluid-electron model to examine the transport. The technique of hybrid modelling allows for probing of plasma motions down to the ion-inertial scale, allowing for insights into particle motions on spatial scales below the size of the magnetic flux tubes. It also provides a computational framework capable of capturing large-scale flow dynamics, on the order of a planetary radii in some cases. Results from this model will allow for the examination of bulk transport on spatial scales not currently accessible with state-of-the-art models, improving understanding of mechanisms responsible for moving particles between flux tubes and from the inner to the outer magnetosphere. In this presentation a series of benchmarks will be summarised validating the physical accuracy of the model, as well as initial simulation results from model regions initialised with Jovian parameters.