This two-year award will support U.S.-France cooperative research in atmospheric and space physics between Richard F. Martin of Illinois State University and Dominique Delcourt of the French Center for the Study of Earth and Planetary Environments. The project addresses the physics of the aurora borealis (aurora substorms) in response to solar wind variations. The magnetotail region behind the earth is where aurora substorms are triggered and energized. The investigators propose three computational/theoretical projects that address: (1) basic nonlinear dynamics of substorms; (2) applications of the model to the near-Earth magnetotail; and (3) consequences of the model on ions of ionosphere origin entering the magnetotail. These studies are relevant to understanding of space storms, which cause commercial spacecraft anomalies and failures, interruptions of power distribution and of communications. The U.S. investigator brings to this collaboration background in basic nonlinear dynamics and magnetotail dynamical modeling. This is complemented by the French investigator's expertise in ionospheric and near-Earth particle dynamics. The project will further understanding of space storms and extend the work on predicting space weather.
