This project will analyze data taken from the MeV Auroral X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy (MAXIS) 2000 long-duration balloon campaign. The balloon was launched from McMurdo, Antarctica. It detected two types of high-energy (relativistic) particle precipitation, (1) MeV precipitation events and (2) microbursts. The analysis will examine the sources and particle energization mechanisms responsible for these two different types of events. The observational data will be put into context by comparing the observations with different models of the processes by which particles are energized and then scattered into the loss-cone so that they are observed as precipitating particles. In addition to the purely scientific aspects of the research, the project will enhance education by including undergraduates in the research program and the Dartmouth College Women in Science Project (WISP) will help enhance diversity in space science.
