A self-consistent study of the Earth's radiation belts

Abstract

In most work on the dynamical equilibrium of the Van Allen belts it is assumed that the plasma is tenuous, i.e. one neglects second-order effects such as the magnetic field generated by the particles in the belt compared to the geomagnetic field. It would seem from the results of these calculations that this is not a good approximation and that the plasma energy/volume is comparable to the geomagnetic energy/volume. In the present work the radiation belts are treated self-consistently. In particular, the question of how much plasma could be trapped in the belts if an unlimited source were present is considered. Judging from a preliminary calculation, it would seem that the Van Allen belts are saturated.