The plasmasphere is the vast "doughnut-shaped" region of the magnetosphere that forms a cold thermal plasma cloud encircling the Earth, terminating abruptly at a radial distance of 30,000 km over a sharp discontinuity known as the plasmapause. This is the first monograph to describe the historical development of ideas concerning the plasmasphere by the pioneering researchers themselves. The monograph brings our picture of the plasmasphere up to date by presenting experimental and observational results of the past three decades, and mathematical and physical theories proposed to explain its formation. The volume will be invaluable for researchers in space physics and will also appeal to those interested in the history of science.
Contents
Preface; Foreword; Introduction; 1. Discovery of the plasmasphere and initial studies of its properties; 2. Electromagnetic sounding of the plasmasphere; 3. Plasmasphere measurements from spacecraft; 4. A global description of the plasmasphere; 5. Theoretical aspects related to the plasmasphere; Epilogue; References; Index.
Reviews
"The book will be of interest to physicists and engineers concerned with this region as well as those curious about the history of this science." Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
"This book is a comprehensive summary of our present knowledge of the Earth's plasmasphere and should be a valuable reference volume to researchers in magnetospheric physics." Carl-Gunne Fäthammar, Space Science Review
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