Quadrennial review of the magnetotail

The findings of research conducted on the magnetotail in the years 1983-1986 are presented. The topics discussed include observations of the distant (between 60 and 220 earth radii) and the near-earth (earthward of 35 earth radii) magnetotail regions by the ISEE l, 2, and 3 and IMP 8 spacecraft, and magnetotail theory and modeling. These studies established the association between substorms and plasmoids in the deep tail and the linkage between the magnetosphere and the ionosphere via field-aligned currents and electric fields.