Ion Composition and Electron Pitch Angle Variations for Interchange Events in Jupiter's Inner Magnetosphere

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Abstract
The outward transport of plasma and magnetic fluxes in the gas giant magnetospheres is balanced with a return flow of flux tubes emptied through magnetic reconnection. Evidence of interchange motions between inward and outward moving flux tubes have long been reported around Jupiter and Saturn. Although amply documented at Saturn, the lack of useable low energy plasma data has prevented the analysis of their plasma properties at Jupiter. The Juno data sets allow us to characterize the plasma populations inside nine interchange events at Jupiter between M‐shells 5 and 10. We confirm that they are strongly depleted in heavy ions and low energy protons and electrons, but filled with higher energy protons and electrons. We model the pitch‐angle distribution of trapped electrons through adiabatic transport and estimate that the reported flux tubes were likely isotropic between M‐shells 11 and 35. The observed features bear strong similarities with their Kronian counterparts.
Funding Information
  • Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR‐22‐CE49‐0005‐01 ACT)
  • Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR‐24‐CE30‐0324)
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NNM06AA75C)
  • National Aeronautics and Space Administration (699050X)

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