Multispacecraft
observation
of reconnection on the dusk flank
We examine a very slow boundary
layer crossing made by the Cluster spacecraft on December 7, 2000.
During the crossing the IMF rotated from due south to due north in a
discontinuous fashion. Evidence from Cluster shows that the boundary
layer changes from an open, reconnection-driven configuration to a
closed, Kelvin-Helmholtz-driven configuration. Using simultaneous data
from ground-based radars and from FAST as well as from Cluster, we
investigate the changes in the convection pattern, the destabilization
of the Kelvin-Helmholtz mechanism, and the response of the boundary
layer to discontinuous changes in solar wind and IMF.