Large-Scale Variations in Ion Flows in the Central Part and the Boundary of the Plasma Sheet

Abstract

The results of multisatellite observations in a magnetotail at short distances (\({\sim }10{{R}_{E}}\)) in two close regions inside the plasma sheet of the magnetotail and at the sheet boundary indicate the kinetic nature of processes in the magnetotail plasma. Disturbances simultaneously observed in ion flows and in their anisotropy occur due to the presence of a thin, kinetic current sheet in the tail. It is located at greater distances than the observation regions in such an experiment. It was shown earlier that the thin current sheet nested in the thicker plasma sheet is the most important component of the magneto-plasma structure, corresponding to the process of magnetic reconnection in the magnetotail. Therefore, the kinetic structures observed in such an experiment are manifestations of a typical disturbance that corresponds to magnetic reconnection at larger distances.