Genesis of Interplanetary Intermittent Turbulence: a Case Study of Rope-Rope Magnetic Reconnection

In a recent paper, the relation between current sheet, magnetic reconnection, and turbulence at the leading edge of an interplanetary coronal mass ejection was studied. We report here the observation of magnetic reconnection at the interface region of two interplanetary magnetic flux ropes. The front and rear boundary layers of three interplanetary magnetic flux ropes are identified, and the structures of magnetic flux ropes are reconstructed by the Grad Shafranov method. A quantitative analysis of the reconnection condition and the degree of intermittency reveals that rope-rope magnetic reconnection is the most likely site for genesis of interplanetary intermittency turbulence in this event. The dynamic pressure pulse resulting from this reconnection triggers the onset of a geomagnetic storm.