Proton kinetic effects and turbulent energy cascade rate in the solar wind

The first observed connection between kinetic instabilities driven by proton temperature anisotropy and estimated energy cascade rates in the turbulent solar wind is reported using measurements from the Wind spacecraft at 1 AU. We find enhanced cascade rates are concentrated along the boundaries of the (β∥, T⊥/T∥) plane, which includes regions theoretically unstable to the mirror and firehose instabilities. A strong correlation is observed between the estimated cascade rate and kinetic effects such as temperature anisotropy and plasma heating, resulting in protons 5-6 times hotter and 70%-90% more anisotropic than under typical isotropic plasma conditions. These results offer new insights into kinetic processes in a turbulent regime.