Comparison of energetic ion composition between ring current and plasma sheet

We calculated the energy density of H+, He+, and O+ ions in the plasma sheet during the development of a magnetic storm, using energetic (9-210 keV) particle flux data obtained by the suprathermal ion composition spectrometer (STICS) sensor of the energetic particle and ion composition (EPIC) instrument on the Geotail spacecraft. We found that the energy density ratio of O+/H+ stayed at similar to 0.1 before storms, but increased as storms developed, reaching 0.5-1.0 at a peak of storms. The energy density ratio of He+/H+ was rather constant at 0.01-0.02. These results are comparable with those in the outer ring current reported by the previous studies. This implies that the ions of ionospheric origin (O+ and He+) are transported to the ring current through the plasma sheet.