Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Jan 2010
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010aas...21532205e&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #215, #322.05; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 42, p.324
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Magnetic fields impact the dynamics of astrophysical plasmas in many regimes, from galaxies to stars to planets. This universal process suggests that knowledge can be gained by doing comparative analysis in different regimes. Recently, Opher et al. 2009 used a 3D magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulation of the heliosphere to show that the flow inside the heliosheath is sensitive to the direction of the magnetic field in the interstellar medium. Direct measurements of the flows in this region by Voyager 2 allowed for the best estimates to date of the strength and direction of the local interstellar magnetic field.
Here we draw an analogy between the heliosphere and Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs). Like the interstellar magnetic field, the structure of the magnetic field in a CME eruption is not well known near the Sun, and several initiation models exist. We characterize plasma flows in the CME-sheath - the subsonic flow region between the CME-driven shock and the location of pressure balance between the solar wind and the ejected material (analogous to the heliosheath). Using a 3D MHD simulation, we investigate the relationship between these flows and the orientation of the CME's magnetic field. This result provides a new diagnostic to probe the 3D magnetic field structure of CMEs, without need for direct measurement.
This research is supported by the NSF CAREER Grant and LWS.
Evans Rebekah M.
Opher Merav
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