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AURORA.jl

AURORA.jl is a time-dependent multi-stream electron transport code.

It is suitable for modeling the transport of ionospheric electron fluxes when the electron precipitation varies rapidly, typically on sub-second timescales.

Quick start

using AURORA

# Set up the physical model
msis_file = find_msis_file()
iri_file  = find_iri_file()
model = AuroraModel([100, 600], 180:-10:0, 1000, msis_file, iri_file, 13)

# Define a flickering input flux
flux = InputFlux(
    FlatSpectrum(1e-2; E_min=100),
    SinusoidalFlickering(5.0);
    beams=1,
    z_source=3000.0,
)

# Create and run a short time-dependent simulation
savedir = mkpath(joinpath("data", "my_first_simulation"))
sim = AuroraSimulation(model, flux, savedir;
                       mode=TimeDependentMode(duration=0.2, dt=0.01, CFL_number=128))
run!(sim)
AuroraSimulation (Time-dependent):
├── Model:       AuroraModel(AltitudeGrid(100.0 - 600.0 km, 410 points), EnergyGrid(2.05 - 998.39 eV, 164 bins), PitchAngleGrid(18 beams))
├── Flux:        InputFlux(FlatSpectrum(IeE_tot=0.01 W/m², E_min=100.0 eV), SinusoidalFlickering(f=5.0 Hz, amplitude=1.0), beams=[1])
├── Mode:        TimeDependentMode(duration=0.2, dt=0.01)
├── Savedir:     data/my_first_simulation
├── duration:      0.2 s
├── dt:            0.01 s
├── dt (internal): 0.001 s
├── CFL factor:    10
├── n_loop:        1
└── Cache:       initialized

See the Time-Dependent Simulation tutorial for a full walkthrough.

Documentation outline

  • Tutorials — step-by-step guides: installation, first simulation, steady-state and time-dependent examples, custom input flux.
  • Physics — the equations and physical models behind AURORA.
  • Implementation — internal architecture, call chain, matrix assembly, and solver details.
  • API Reference — docstrings for all exported types and functions.

Citing AURORA

If you use AURORA.jl in your work, please cite it as follows. Note that 10.5281/zenodo.11238620 refers to the general project and all its versions. Version-specific DOIs can be found on Zenodo.

@software{Gavazzi_AURORA_jl_2026,
    author = {Gavazzi, Etienne and Gustavsson, Björn},
    doi = {10.5281/zenodo.11238620},
    license = {GPL-3.0},
    month = mar,
    title = {{AURORA.jl}},
    url = {https://github.com/egavazzi/AURORA.jl},
    version = {0.7.0},
    year = {2026}
}