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EP: Fachverband Extraterrestrische Physik

EP 1: Near Earth Space

EP 1.1: Invited Talk

Monday, March 19, 2018, 16:30–17:00, BSZ - Pabel HS

Recent Advances in Understanding of the Van Allen Radiation Belts — •Yuri Shprits — Helmholtz Centre Potsdam, GFZ German Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam, Germany — Institute for Physics and Astronomy, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany

The Van Allen radiation belts consist of energetic electrons and ions at energies above 100 keV trapped by the Earth's magnetic field. These very energetic particles, often referred to as killer electrons, may be harmful to satellite electronics and humans in space. During geomagnetic storms, radiation in the near-Earth space can dramatically increase, and numerous anomalies are often reported by satellite operators. Since the discovery of the belts by the first US satellite over half a century ago, the origin of relativistic electrons in the radiation belts and physical mechanisms responsible for the dynamics of the belts has been a focus of extensive scientific research. We present an overview of recently discovered acceleration and loss mechanisms that determine the evolution of the belts, and an overview of the developed models of the space environment. We also present the real-time data assimilative framework based on the Versatile Radiation Belt Code (VERB). Using real-time streams from ACE, Van Allen Probes, GOES, and predictions of Kp index, we issue a highly accurate now-cast by assimilating all available data, and issue a forecast based on the now-cast.