Rice Convection Model simulation of the Galaxy-15 substorm

Abstract:

This study aims to simulate a famous substorm event occurred on 5 April 2010, which caused anomaly to a communication satellite Galaxy 15. The event gains much attention in the community because rarely have we seen such an intense expansion phase and the corresponding aurora under a steady southward IMF that is classic for typical substorms. During the event, the absolute value of the AL index reached an unusually large value of 2500 nT alongside with other large indices showcasing how strong the expansion phase is, which is the reason we call this event a ‘super substorm’. It is proposed that such an intense event was incurred by a series of extremely intense and localized magnetic reconnection and fast flows toward Earth. Taking advantage of RCM (Rice Convective Model), we set forward the understanding of this event by simulating this whole event. The expansion phase is modeled by applying plasma-sheet bubble injections to represent fast earthward flows. We will also present a comparison of our simulation with observations from relevant satellites like THEMIS and GOES.