Global Distribution of EMIC Waves and Its Association to Subauroral Proton Precipitation During the 27 May 2017 Storm: Modeling and Multipoint Observations

Recent simulation studies using the RAM-SCB model showed that proton precipitation contributes significantly to the total energy flux deposited into the subauroral ionosphere thereby affecting the magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling. In this study, we use the BATS-R-US + RAM-SCB model to understand the evolution of ElectroMagnetic Ion Cyclotron (EMIC) waves in the inner magnetosphere, their correspondence to the proton precipitation into the subauroral ionosphere, and to assess the performance of the model in reproducing the EMIC wave-particle interactions. During the 27 May 2017 storm, Arase and RBSP-A satellites observed typical signatures of EMIC waves in the inner magnetosphere. Within this interval, Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/MetOp satellites observed significant proton precipitation in the dusk-midnight sector. Simulation results show that H- and He-band EMIC waves are excited within regions of strong temperature anisotropy near the plasmapause. The simulated growth rates of EMIC waves show a similar trend to that of the EMIC wave power observed by the Arase and RBSP-A satellites, suggesting that the model can reproduce the EMIC wave activity qualitatively. The simulated H-band waves in the dusk sector are stronger than He-band waves possibly due to the presence of excess protons in the boundary conditions obtained from the BATS-R-US code. The precipitating proton fluxes reproduced by the simulation with EMIC waves are found to agree reasonably well with the DMSP and NOAA/MetOp satellite observations. It is suggested that EMIC wave scattering of ring current ions can account for proton precipitation observed by the DMSP and MetOp satellites during the 27 May 2017 storm. During geomagnetic storms, plasma waves are generated in the Earth's magnetosphere. Among these waves, ElectroMagnetic Ion Cyclotron (EMIC) waves can scatter protons from the ring current, causing them to precipitate into the subauroral ionosphere. Such precipitation not only affects the midlatitude ionosphere but also impacts the dynamics of the magnetosphere. Understanding the origin of magnetospheric plasma waves and how they interact with the magnetospheric populations, along with their subsequent impact on the ionosphere, is crucial for predicting space weather accurately. In our study, we combined ground and satellite observations with simulations using the BATS-R-US + RAM-SCB to investigate EMIC wave-particle interactions in the inner magnetosphere and the resulting proton precipitation during the 27 May 2017 storm. We found that EMIC waves were excited in the dusk-midnight sector during the storm's main phase, within the regions of strong temperature anisotropy. The simulations reproduced the proton precipitation observed in the dusk-midnight sector by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program /National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration MetOP satellites fairly well. The model qualitatively captured the growth of the EMIC waves during the storm and showed that the EMIC waves, by scattering the ring current, were responsible for the proton precipitation into the dusk-midnight sector during the storm. ElectroMagnetic Ion Cyclotron (EMIC) wave activity and proton precipitation were observed simultaneously in the dusk-midnight sector during the 27 May 2017 storm The BATS-R-US + RAM-SCB model can capture the EMIC wave growth during the storm qualitatively The EMIC wave scattering of ring current ions can account for the proton precipitation in the dusk-midnight sector during the storm