• Journal of Space Technology and Applications
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.1-25
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• 2023

In this paper, I briefly introduce recently terminated, current, and future scientific spacecraft missions for in situ and remote-sensing observations of Earth's and other planetary magnetospheres as of February 2023. The spacecraft introduced here are Geotail, Cluster, Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms / Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence, and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun (THEMIS / ARTEMIS), Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS), Exploration of energization and Radiation in Geospace (ERG), Cusp Plasma Imaging Detector (CuPID), and EQUilibriUm Lunar-Earth point 6U Spacecraft (EQUULEUS) for recently terminated or currently operated missions for Earth's magnetosphere; Lunar Environment Heliospheric X-ray Imager (LEXI), Gateway, Solar wind Magneto-sphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE), HelioSwarm, Solar-Terrestrial Observer for the Response of the Magnetosphere (STORM), Geostationary Transfer Orbit Satellite (GTOSat), GEOspace X-ray imager (GEO-X), Plasma Observatory, Magnetospheric Constellation (MagCon), self-Adaptive Magnetic reconnection Explorer (AME), and COnstellation of Radiation BElt Survey (CORBES) approved for launch or proposed for future missions for Earth's magnetosphere; BepiColombo for Mercury and Juno for Jupiter for current missions for planetary magnetospheres; Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) and Europa Clipper for Jupiter, Uranus Orbiter and Probe (UOP) for Uranus, and Neptune Odyssey for Neptune approved for launch or proposed for future missions for planetary magnetospheres. I discuss the recent trend and future direction of spacecraft missions as well as remaining challenges in magnetospheric research. I hope this paper will be a handy guide to the current status and trend of magnetospheric missions.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.99-99
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• 2013

If the magnetic field is extremely strong, as in pulsar/black hole magnetospheres, the Alfven speed approaches to the speed of light and we need relativity to describe interactions of Alfvenic waves. In this poster, we discuss physics of Alfvenic turbulence in this limit. We first discuss interaction of Alfvenic wave packets and scaling relations of resulting turbulence. Then we show results of numerical simulations. Finally we compare relativistic Alfvenic turbulence and its Newtonian counterpart.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2003

In the earlier papers we analyzed the axisymmetric, nonstationary electrodynamics of the central black hole and a surrounding thin accretion disk in an active galactic nucleus. Based on those papers we analyze the axisymmetric, nonstationary black hole magnetosphere in this paper. We concentrate on deriving the ‘Grad-Shafranov equations’; both in the force-free and non-force-free cases. In the time-independent limit our equations naturally coincide with stationary equations as they should.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2016

Over the last few years, the data obtained using the Large Area Telescope (LAT) aboard the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has provided new insights on high-energy processes in globular clusters, particularly those involving compact objects such as MilliSecond Pulsars (MSPs). Gamma-ray emission in the 100 MeV to 10 GeV range has been detected from more than a dozen globular clusters in our galaxy, including 47 Tucanae and Terzan 5. Based on a sample of known gammaray globular clusters, the empirical relations between gamma-ray luminosity and properties of globular clusters such as their stellar encounter rate, metallicity, and possible optical and infrared photon energy densities, have been derived. The measured gamma-ray spectra are generally described by a power law with a cut-off at a few gigaelectronvolts. Together with the detection of pulsed γ-rays from two MSPs in two different globular clusters, such spectral signature lends support to the hypothesis that γ-rays from globular clusters represent collective curvature emission from magnetospheres of MSPs in the clusters. Alternative models, involving Inverse-Compton (IC) emission of relativistic electrons that are accelerated close to MSPs or pulsar wind nebula shocks, have also been suggested. Observations at >100 GeV by using Fermi/LAT and atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes such as H.E.S.S.-II, MAGIC-II, VERITAS, and CTA will help to settle some questions unanswered by current data.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.82.2-82.2
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• 2011

Major solar eruptive events, consisting of both a large flare and a near simultaneous fast coronal mass ejection (CME), are the most powerful explosions in the solar system, releasing $10^{32}-10^{33}$ ergs in ${\sim}10^{3-4}\;s$. They are also the most powerful and energetic particle accelerators, producing ions up to tens of GeV and electrons up to hundreds of MeV. For flares, the accelerated particles often contain up to ~50% of the total energy released, a remarkable efficiency that indicates the particle acceleration is intimately related to the energy release process. Similar transient energy release/particle acceleration processes appear to occur elsewhere in the universe, in stellar flares, magnetars, etc. Escaping solar energetic particles (SEPs) appear to be accelerated by the shock wave driven by the fast CME at altitudes of ~1 40 $R_s$, with an efficiency of ~10%, about what is required for supernova shock waves to produce galactic cosmic rays. Thus, large solar eruptive events are our most accessible laboratory for understanding the fundamental physics of transient energy release and particle acceleration in cosmic magnetized plasmas. They also produce the most extreme space weather - the escaping SEPs are a major radiation hazard for spacecraft and humans in space, the intense flare photon emissions disrupt GPS and communications on the Earth, while the fast CME restructures the interplanetary medium with severe effects on the magnetospheres and atmospheres of the Earth and other planets. Here I review present observations of large solar eruptive events, and future space and ground-based measurements needed to understand the fundamental processes involved.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.177-187
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• 2003

Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are distant, powerful sources of radiation over the entire electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to gamma-rays. There is much evidence that they are driven by gravitational accretion of stars, dust, and gas, onto central massive black holes (MBHs) imprisoning anywhere from $\~$1 to $\~$10,000 million solar masses; such objects may naturally form in the centers of galaxies during their normal dynamical evolution. A small fraction of AGNs, of the radio-loud type (RLAGNs), are somehow able to generate powerful synchrotron-emitting structures (cores, jets, lobes) with sizes ranging from pc to Mpc. A brief summary of AGN observations and theories is given, with an emphasis on RLAGNs. Preliminary results from the imaging of 10000 extragalactic radio sources observed in the MITVLA snapshot survey, and from a new analytic theory of the time-variable power output from Kerr black hole magnetospheres, are presented. To better understand the complex physical processes within the central engines of AGNs, it is important to confront the observations with theories, from the viewpoint of analyzing the time-variable behaviours of AGNs - which have been recorded over both 'short' human ($10^0-10^9\;s$) and 'long' cosmic ($10^{13} - 10^{17}\;s$) timescales. Some key ingredients of a basic mathematical formalism are outlined, which may help in building detailed Monte-Carlo models of evolving AGN populations; such numerical calculations should be potentially important tools for useful interpretation of the large amounts of statistical data now publicly available for both AGNs and RLAGNs.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2014

Quite recently, it has been suggested that the interaction of the solar wind with Mercury results in the variation in the solar wind velocity in the Earth's neighborhood during inferior conjunctions with Mercury. This suggestion has important implications both on the plasma physics of the interplanetary space and on the space weather forecast. In this study we have attempted to answer a question of whether the claim is properly tested. We confirm that there are indeed ups and downs in the profile of the solar wind velocity measured at the distance of 1 AU from the Sun. However, the characteristic attribute of the variation in the solar wind velocity during the inferior conjunctions with Mercury is found to be insensitive to the phase of the solar cycles, contrary to an earlier suggestion. We have found that the cases of the superior conjunctions with Mercury and of even randomly chosen data sets rather result in similar features. Cases of Venus are also examined, where it is found that the ups and downs with a period of ~ 10 to 15 days can be also seen. We conclude, therefore, that those variations in the solar wind velocity turn out to be a part of random fluctuations and have nothing to do with the relative position of inner planets. At least, one should conclude that the solar wind velocity is not a proper observable modulated by inner planets at the distance of 1 AU from the Sun in the Earth's neighborhood during inferior conjunctions.