The Termination Shock may have a Bow-shaped Open Geometry

Details The Termination Shock may have a Bow-shaped Open Geometry The Termination Shock may have a Bow-shaped Open Geometry

Feb 2011

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011apj...728....3w&link_type=abstract

The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 728, Issue 1, article id. 3 (2011).

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Magnetic Fields, Magnetohydrodynamics: Mhd, Plasmas, Solar Wind

Scientific paper

The global termination shock has been calculated by many authors. All show that the shock has a closed geometry for which the termination shock encompasses the Sun. This research points out that there exists another possibility: that the termination shock may have an open geometry in which the shock on the upwind side flares out along the sides, so that the supersonic solar wind remains shock free on the downwind side in the heliotail. Interaction of the solar wind with the interstellar medium leads to the formation of the heliosphere and termination shock. The interaction causes substantial disturbances on both sides of the heliopause. On the heliosphere side, the magnetic field and plasma flow are significantly compressed as the heliopause blocks the forward motion of the supersonic solar wind; this mechanism is responsible for the formation of the termination shock on the upwind side. However, on the downwind side the motion of supersonic solar wind is unobstructed. There is no repeat of the kind of intense solar wind interstellar interaction like that which occurs on the upwind side. The mechanism for shock formation is not present on the downwind side; thus, the global termination shock likely has an open geometry. An example is obtained to demonstrate global characteristics of the termination shock with a bow-shaped open geometry. The shock is a normal shock at the nose point. The shock weakens along the shock surface from the nose to its flanks; eventually, the shock asymptotically reduces to a Mach wave.

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