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W. R. Paterson, L. A. Frank (U. Iowa)
Field-aligned and bi-directional streams of hot electrons are detected with the plasma instrumentation of the Galileo spacecraft in the Jovian magnetosphere in three different regions. (1) Inside the Io flux tube where the thermal ions are hung-up with respect to the moon due to the high conductivity there. (2) In the plasma torus during flux-tube interchange events that mediate radial transport of Iogenic plasma. (3) In the plasma sheet at Jovicentric distances beyond about 20 Jupiter radii, where corotation breaks down. The energies of the electrons extend to several 10's of keV and intensities are sufficient for production of aurorae. The similar characteristics of the electron beams and the associations with non-corotation of the thermal plasmas are elements of commonality that link these observations from otherwise disparate regions and suggest the possibility of a common physical cause for the beams. In this presentation we exhibit evidence of the beams and their environs and discuss possible sources.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 34, #3< br> © 2002. The American Astronomical Soceity.