Double Discontinuities in Space Plasma.

Whang, Y. C.

Technical Information Center Oak Ridge Tennessee

关键词: Magnetic fields;    Interplanetary space;    Plasma (Physics);    Magnetotail;    Space environments;   

RP-ID  :  DE2004823765

学科分类：工程和技术（综合）

美国|英语

来源: National Technical Reports Library

【 摘 要 】

This research used high-resolution magnetic field data to examine the interior structures of MHD shocks in interplanetary space and in the magnetotail; we discovered that a slow- mode shock is often followed by an adjoining rotational discontinuity layer on the postshock side. The thickness of each layer is of the order of a few ion inertial lengths. Such a compound structure is known as a double discontinuity. When the magnetic field rotates by several degrees per ion inertial length inside a thin layer, the Hall current term becomes important in the generalized Ohm's law. Steady state solutions based on the Hall-MHD theory have been obtained to show the merging of a rotational layer and a slow shock layer to form a compound structure like the observed double dis continuities.