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With the advent of the Heliophysics/Geospace System Observatory (H/GSO), a complement of multi-spacecraft missions and ground-based observatories to study the space environment, data retrieval, analysis, and visualization of space physics data can be daunting. The Space Physics Environment Data Analysis System (SPEDAS), a grass-roots software development platform (www.spedas.org), is now officially supported by NASA Heliophysics as part of its data environment infrastructure. It serves more than a dozen space missions and ground observatories and can integrate the full complement of past and upcoming space physics missions with minimal resources, following clear, simple, and well-proven guidelines. Free, modular and configurable to the needs of individual missions, it works in both command-line (ideal for experienced users) and Graphical User Interface (GUI) mode (reducing the learning curve for first-time users). Both options have “crib-sheets, ” user-command sequences in ASCII format that can facilitate record-and-repeat actions, especially for complex operations and plotting. Crib-sheets enhance scientific interactions, as users can move rapidly and accurately from exchanges of technical information on data processing to efficient discussions regarding data interpretation and science. SPEDAS can readily query and ingest all International Solar Terrestrial Physics (ISTP)-compatible products from the Space Physics Data Facility (SPDF), enabling access to a vast collection of historic and current mission data. The planned incorporation of Heliophysics Application Programmer’s Interface (HAPI) standards will facilitate data ingestion from distributed datasets that adhere to these standards. Although SPEDAS is currently Interactive Data Language (IDL)-based (and interfaces to Java-based tools such as Autoplot), efforts are under-way to expand it further to work with python (first as an interface tool and potentially even receiving an under-the-hood replacement). We re

A glowing ribbon of purple light running east-west in the night sky has recently been observed by citizen scientists. This narrow, subauroral, visible structure, distinct from the traditional auroral oval, was largely undocumented in the scientific literature and little was known about its formation. Amateur photo sequences showed colors distinctly different from common types of aurora and occasionally indicated magnetic field–aligned substructures. Observations from the Swarm satellite as it crossed the arc have revealed an unusual level of electron temperature enhancement and density depletion, along with a strong westward ion flow, indicating that a pronounced subauroral ion drift (SAID) is associated with this structure. These early results suggest the arc is an optical manifestation of SAID, presenting new opportunities for investigation of the dynamic SAID signatures from the ground. On the basis of the measured ion properties and original citizen science name, we propose to identify this arc as a Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement (STEVE).

A glowing ribbon of purple light running east-west in the night sky has recently been observed by citizen scientists. This narrow, subauroral, visible structure, distinct from the traditional auroral oval, was largely undocumented in the scientific literature and little was known about its formation. Amateur photo sequences showed colors distinctly different from common types of aurora and occasionally indicated magnetic field–aligned substructures. Observations from the Swarm satellite as it crossed the arc have revealed an unusual level of electron temperature enhancement and density depletion, along with a strong westward ion flow, indicating that a pronounced subauroral ion drift (SAID) is associated with this structure. These early results suggest the arc is an optical manifestation of SAID, presenting new opportunities for investigation of the dynamic SAID signatures from the ground. On the basis of the measured ion properties and original citizen science name, we propose to identify this arc as a Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement (STEVE).

Color mosaic CCDs use a matrix of different wide-band micro-filters in order to produce images with several (often three) color channels. These devices are increasingly employed in auroral studies to provide time sequences of two dimensional luminosity maps, but the color information is typically only used for qualitative analysis. In this study we use Backus–Gilbert linear inversion techniques to obtain quantitative measures of effective spectral resolution for multi-channel color mosaic CCDs. These techniques also allow us to explore the possibility of further improvements by modifying or combining multiple detectors. We consider two spectrally calibrated commercial color CCDs (Sony ICX285AQ and ICX429AKL) in order to determine effective wavelength resolution of each device individually, together, and with additional filters. From these results we develop methods to enhance the utility of existing data sets, and propose ways to improve the next generation of low-cost color auroral imaging systems.

Optical aurora can be structured over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales with spectral features that depend on the energy of precipitating particles. Scientific studies typically combine data from multiple instruments that are individually optimized for spatial, spectral, or temporal resolution. One recent addition combines all-sky optics with color mosaic CCD (charge-coupled device) detectors that use a matrix of different wide-band micro-filters to produce an image with several (often three) color channels. These devices provide sequences of two dimensional multispectral luminosity with simultaneous exposure of all color channels allowing interchannel comparison even during periods with rapidly varying aurora. At present color auroral image data are primarily used for qualitative analysis. In this study a quantitative approach based on Backus–Gilbert linear inversion was used to better understand the effective spectral resolution of existing and proposed instruments. Two spectrally calibrated commercial detectors (Sony ICX285AQ and ICX429AKL) with very different color mosaics (RGB (red, green, blue) vs. CYGM (cyan, yellow, green, magenta)) were found to have very similar spectral resolution: three channels with FWHM (full-width half-maximum) ≈100 nm; a NIR (near infrared) blocking filter is important for stabilizing inversion of both three-channel configurations. Operating the ICX429AKL in a noninterlaced mode would improve spectral resolution and provide an additional near infrared channel. Transformations from arbitrary device channels to RGB are easily obtained through inversion. Simultaneous imaging of multiple auroral emissions may be achieved using a single-color camera with a triple-pass filter. Combinations of multiple cameras with simple filters should provide ~50 nm resolution across most of the visible spectrum. Performance of other instrument designs could be explored and compared using the same quantitative framework.

We present riometer and in situ observations of a substorm electron injection on 27 August 2001. The event is seen at more than 20 separate locations (including ground stations and 6 satellites: Cluster, Polar, Chandra, and 3 Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) spacecraft). The injection is observed to be dispersionless at 12 of these locations. Combining these observations with information from the GOES-8 geosynchronous satellite we argue that the injection initiated near geosynchronous orbit and expanded pole-ward (tailward) and equatorward (earthward) afterward. Further, the injection began several minutes after the reconnection identified in the Cluster data, thus providing concrete evidence that, in at least some events, near-Earth reconnection has little if any ionospheric signature.

We present ground-based and in situ observations from March 13, 2007. The THEMIS satellites were in the evening sector conjugate to THEMIS ground-based imagers. At ∼0507 UT there was an optical onset on inner CPS field lines. This involved near-simultaneous brightening of 1 MLT hour longitudinal segment of the onset arc. The part of the arc that brightened was that closest to the equatorward boundary of the diffuse (proton) aurora. Within one minute, a dipolarization front moved across four THEMIS satellites. Based on their locations, the order in which they detected the dipolarization front, and the auroral evolution, we assert that the expansion phase began earthward of the four satellites and evolved radially outwards. We conclude that this onset occurred in an azimuthally localized region of highly stretched field lines.

A merged data set from Canadian Auroral Network for the OPEN Program Unified Study (CANOPUS) and Magnetometers-Ionospheric Radars-All-Sky Cameras Large Experiment (MIRACLE) magnetometer stations is used to study variations observed at widely separated loc