Quasi-static, magnetic-field-aligned (parallel) potentials have been considered the primary source of charged particle acceleration in the aurora where precipitating electrons create a visible display. This finding has been controversial since, at one time, it was widely believed that parallel potentials could not be supported by a collisionless plasma. We present observations from the fast auroral snapshot (FAST) satellite which strongly support this acceleration mechanism and, moreover, show evidence of a second plasma regime region which supports quasi-static parallel potentials. The uncovering of parallel potentials in two plasma regimes suggests that they may be fundamental in astrophysical plasmas, supplementing the classical mechanisms of Fermi and betatron acceleration. We summarize the observations that demonstrate this acceleration mechanism. We also summarize evidence of Debye-scale plasma structures which are associated with these parallel potentials. These small-scale structures appear to be three-dimensional electron phase space holes, a new type of plasma structure.
准静态的、沿磁场方向（平行）的电位一直被认为是极光中带电粒子加速的主要来源，在那里沉降的电子产生了可见的辉光。这一发现曾引发争议，因为曾几何时，人们普遍认为无碰撞等离子体中不可能维持平行电位。我们展示了来自快速极光快照（FAST）卫星的观测结果，这些观测强烈支持这一加速机制，并且进一步揭示了第二个等离子体区域中存在支持准静态平行电位的证据。在两个等离子体区域中发现平行电位表明，它们可能在天体物理等离子体中具有普遍性，补充了经典的费米加速和回旋加速机制。我们总结了证明这一加速机制的观测证据。我们还总结了与这些平行电位相关的德拜尺度等离子体结构的证据。这些微小结构表现为三维电子相空间空洞，是一种新型的等离子体结构。