HELP: Regions

‘Regions’ denotes a naming convention of three dimensional and two dimensional zones that are associated with a spacecraft’s location for a particular point in time. The ‘Regions’ screen allows you to choose the type(s) of regions that can be generated and displayed as output. All four region types can be associated with a spacecraft at any given time. The specific regions that constitute each region type are as follows:

• SPACECRAFT REGIONS - (3 dimensional zones) Such a region is based on the spacecraft’s position within the magnetosphere. A spacecraft can occupy only one region of this region type at any given time. A spacecraft region assignment can be one of the following:

  • Interplanetary medium,
  • Dayside Magnetosheath, Nightside Magnetosheath,
  • Dayside Magnetosphere, Nightside Magnetosphere,
  • Dayside Plasmasphere, Nightside Plasmasphere,
  • Plasma Sheet,
  • Tail Lobe,
  • LLBL (Low Latitude Boundry Layer),
  • HLBL (High Latitude Boundry Layer - formerly known as the Mantle)

• RADIAL TRACED FOOTPOINT REGIONS - (2 dimensional zones) Such a region is based on the location on the Earth’s surface where a straight line would intersect when connecting the spacecraft and the Earth’s center. A radial traced region assignment can be one of the following:

  • North Polar Cap, South polar Cap,
  • North Cusp, South Cusp,
  • North Cleft, South Cleft,
  • North Auroral Oval, South Auroral Oval,
  • North Mid-Latitude, South Mid-Latitude,
  • Low Latitude

  Note: The North and South Mid-Latitude regions are defined as the two bands about the Earth that extend from +30 degrees latitude to the North Auroral Oval, and -30 degrees latitude to the South Auroral Oval.
  The Low-Latitude is the band that extends from +30 degrees latitude to -30 degrees latitude.\

• NORTH B TRACED FOOTPOINT REGIONS - (2 dimensional zones) Such a region is based on where the magnetic field line that passes through the spacecraft intersects the Earth’s surface in the Earth’s northern magnetic hemisphere. North B traced footpoint region assignments are the same as the ‘North’ regions and the Low Latitude region used for assigning a radial traced footpoint region.

• SOUTH B TRACED FOOTPOINT REGIONS - (2 dimensional zones) Such a region is based on where the magnetic field line that passes through the spacecraft intersects the Earth’s surface in the Earth’s southern magnetic hemisphere. South B traced footpoint region assignments are the same as the ‘South’ regions and the Low Latitude region used for assigning a radial traced footpoint region.