Local instabilities of Alfven waves in high speed streams

Technical Report · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1978

OSTI ID:5510468

Bavassano, B; Dobrowolny, M; Moreno, G

A two fluid stability analysis of an inhomogeneous solar wind plasma leads to a prediction of possible instabilities in both Alfven and magnetoacoustic waves driven by local velocity gradients. A detailed study, based on Pioneer 6 magnetic and plasma data relative to several high-speed streams in the solar wind, on the direction of propagation of the transverse waves which are found within the streams and on their association with velocity gradients within the stream structure was made. The analysis shows that the observed Alfven waves are consistent with the hypothesis of local generation through instabilities where velocity shear leads in fact to excitation of incompressible waves in directions almost parallel to the magnetic field.

• Research Organization: Comitato Nazionale per le Scienze Fisiche, Frascati (Italy). Lab. di Ricerca e Tecnologia per lo Studio del Plasma nello Spazio
• OSTI ID: 5510468
• Report Number(s): N-79-28111
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640104* -- Astrophysics & Cosmology-- Solar Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ALFVEN WAVES
FLUID MECHANICS
HYDRODYNAMICS
HYDROMAGNETIC WAVES
INHOMOGENEOUS PLASMA
INSTABILITY
INTERPLANETARY MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAGNETOACOUSTIC WAVES
MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMICS
MECHANICS
PIONEER SPACE PROBES
PLASMA
PLASMA INSTABILITY
PLASMA MICROINSTABILITIES
RADIATIONS
SHEAR
SOLAR ACTIVITY
SOLAR PARTICLES
SOLAR RADIATION
SOLAR WIND
SPACE VEHICLES
STELLAR RADIATION
TWO-STREAM INSTABILITY
VELOCITY
WAVE PROPAGATION