Specifically, we will address the following three science objectives: (1) conduct statistics of juno current sheet crossings over a wide range of radial distances and local times and determine the…

The University of Texas at Dallas received a $491,868 research grant from a civilian federal agency (Shared Services Center) awarded June 1, 2023, with an ultimate completion date of May 31, 2026. This grant supports scientific research focused on Jupiter's magnetosphere using data from NASA's Juno spacecraft. The research addresses three primary objectives: conducting statistical analysis of current sheet crossings across varying radial distances and local times to characterize configurations and stress balance mechanisms; revealing how plasma content and characteristics influence current sheet configuration; and exploring the role of accelerated field-aligned electron streams in the Jovian magnetodisk. The investigation leverages measurements from Juno's Magnetic Field Instrument (MAG), Jovian Auroral Distributions Experiment (JADE), Jupiter Energetic-Particle Detector Instrument (JEDI), and wave measurement data from the first 38 orbits to provide comprehensive analysis across different spatial and temporal parameters.

The contract carries no set-aside designation, awarded competitively to University of Texas at Dallas, a public research institution in Richardson, Texas. UTD serves as a prominent federal research partner with substantial experience across multiple scientific domains including space physics, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and materials science. As a child entity of the University of Texas System, UTD maintains an active federal research portfolio with awards from agencies including NASA, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense. The research effort will be performed at the university's Richardson, Texas facility, contributing to broader understanding of Jovian magnetospheric physics and plasma dynamics relevant to planetary science objectives.

Specifically, we will address the following three science objectives: (1) conduct statistics of juno current sheet crossings over a wide range of radial distances and local times and determine the typical current sheet configurations and main mechanisms responsible for the stress balance (2) reveal the dependence of the current sheet configuration on the plasma content (relative contributions of different ION populations to the stress balance) and plasma characteristics (temperature, density, pressure anisotropy) (3) explore the role of accelerated field-aligned electron streams in the current sheet configuration and stress balance in the jovian magnetodisk. To address these three objectives, we will use measurements from juno S magnetic field instrument (MAG), jovian auroral distributions experiment (JADE), and jupiter energetic-particle detector instrument (JEDI). We will also use juno wave measurements (WAVES) to estimate the total plasma density. This project will use juno measurements from the first 38 orbits, which include current sheet crossings at different radial distances over a wide range of local times.