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| SPAT0023-1 | Terrestrial magnetosphere and polar lights
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| Duration : | 30h Th, 10h Pr |
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| Credits/ECTS : |
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| Holder(s) : | Benoît Hubert |
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| Language : | French language |
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| Course contents : | The course is devoted to the introduction of the mechanisms responsible for the formation of the earth polar aurora. This includes the detailed excitation mechanisms of the aurora as well as the physics of the magnetosphere of the planet. After having reminded a few basic concepts of plasma physics, the excitation mechanisms at work in the electron and proton auroras are described. Then, the substorm cycle is studied, and a magnetospheric analysis of this phenomenon is proposed. The magnetospheric cavity is then studied in the context of the space weather and of the interaction of the Earth with the solar wind, in the framework of the Dungey cycle. The course will be essentially based on the book of M.G. Kivelson and C.T. Russel, 'Introduction to space physics', completed with a few papers from scientific literature and books. |
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| Course objective : | Introduction to the physics of the magnetosphere and of the polar aurora. |
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| Prerequisites : | Plasma physics |
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| Contacts : | B. Hubert
B.Hubert@ulg.ac.be |
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