Cross-Scale Coupling and Energy Transfer in the Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere System

Cross-Scale Coupling and Energy Transfer in the Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere System provides a systematic understanding of Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere dynamics. Cross-scale coupling has become increasingly important in the Space Physics community. Although large-scale processes can specify the averaged state of the system reasonably well, they cannot accurately describe localized and rapidly varying structures in space in actual events. Such localized and variable structures can be as intense as the large-scale features.

This book covers observations on quantifying coupling and energetics and simulation on evaluating impacts of cross-scale processes. It includes an in-depth review and summary of the current status of multi-scale coupling processes, fundamental physics, and concise illustrations and plots that are usable in tutorial presentations and classrooms. Organized by physical quantities in the system, Cross-Scale Coupling and Energy Transfer in the Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere System reviews recent advances in cross-scale coupling and energy transfer processes, making it an important resource for space physicists and researchers working on the magnetosphere, ionosphere, and thermosphere.

1. Cross-scale M-I-T system overview
2. Aurora
3. Precipitation
4. Flow and electric field
5. Currents
6. Poynting flux, Joule heating and waves
7. Density
8. Ion-neutral interaction

Toshi Nishimura is a research associate professor at Boston University. He works on magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling across scales using all-sky imaging, radars, and satellite observations. Key research contributions include the substorm pre-onset auroral sequence, pulsating aurora driving by chorus waves, day-night coupling by flow channels, and localized transients throughout the system. He has received the James B. Macelwane Medal from American Geophysical Union in 2016. He has chaired multi-scale ionosphere-thermosphere coupling sessions at CEDAR workshop and AGU in 2018.
Olga Verkhoglyadova is a research group supervisor at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology. Her expertise is in space weather, solar wind driving of the upper atmosphere, plasma waves and satellite data analysis. Key recent research contributions are on energy budget of the ionosphere-thermosphere system, plasma wave processes in the Earth's magnetosphere and ionosphere, atmospheric effects of solar energetic particles, ionospheric and atmospheric remote sensing. She is recipient of several NASA and JPL awards. She chaired sessions on high-latitude system dynamics and multi-scale ionosphere-thermosphere coupling at AGU and CEDAR Workshop in 2018.
Yue Deng is a professor of space physics in the Department of physics at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). Dr. Deng is leading the Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) project to develop next generation simulation capability in ionosphere/thermosphere coupling at multiple scales for environmental specification and prediction. Her professional experience in space physics has involved developing a new 3-dimensional non-hydrostatic ionosphere/thermosphere general circulation model (GCM) and investigating the non-hydrostatic processes in the upper atmosphere. Her research interests include global 3-D modeling of complex system, solar and geomagnetic energy input uncertainty into the upper atmosphere, gravity-acoustic wave propagation, ionosphere-thermosphere coupling in multiple scales, data analysis and planetary atmosphere. She is a recipient of a NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award. She is serving as a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Committee of Solar and Space Physics (CSSP).