Nature and Scalings of Density Fluctuations of Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Applications to the Solar Wind
Abstract
Abstract The solar wind is a magnetized and turbulent plasma. Its turbulence is often dominated by Alfvénic fluctuations and often deemed as nearly incompressible far away from the Sun, as shown by in situ measurements near 1 au. However, for solar wind closer to the Sun, the plasma β decreases (often lower than unity) while the turbulent Mach number M t increases (can approach unity, e.g., transonic fluctuations). These conditions could produce significantly more compressible effects, characterized by enhanced density fluctuations, as seen by several space missions. In this paper, a series of 3D MHD simulations of turbulence are carried out to understand the properties of compressible turbulence, particularly the generation of density fluctuations. We find that, over a broad range of parameter space in plasma β , cross helicity, and polytropic index, the turbulent density fluctuations scale linearly as a function of M t , with the scaling coefficients showing weak dependence on parameters. Furthermore, through detailed spatiotemporal analysis, we show that the density fluctuations are dominated by low-frequency nonlinear structures, rather than compressible MHD eigenwaves. These results could be important for understanding how compressible turbulence contributes to solar wind heating near the Sun.
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program; National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1886102
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1962791
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-22-32609
Journal ID: ISSN 0004-637X
- Grant/Contract Number:
- 89233218CNA000001; 80NSSC20K0377
- Resource Type:
- Published Article
- Journal Name:
- The Astrophysical Journal
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: The Astrophysical Journal Journal Volume: 936 Journal Issue: 2; Journal ID: ISSN 0004-637X
- Publisher:
- American Astronomical Society
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS; Heliospheric and Magnetospheric Physics; Solar Wind; Magnetohydrodynamical Simulations
Citation Formats
Fu, Xiangrong, Li 李, Hui 晖., Gan, Zhaoming, Du, Senbei, and Steinberg, John. Nature and Scalings of Density Fluctuations of Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Applications to the Solar Wind. United States: N. p., 2022.
Web. doi:10.3847/1538-4357/ac8802.
Fu, Xiangrong, Li 李, Hui 晖., Gan, Zhaoming, Du, Senbei, & Steinberg, John. Nature and Scalings of Density Fluctuations of Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Applications to the Solar Wind. United States. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac8802
Fu, Xiangrong, Li 李, Hui 晖., Gan, Zhaoming, Du, Senbei, and Steinberg, John. Thu .
"Nature and Scalings of Density Fluctuations of Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Applications to the Solar Wind". United States. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac8802.
@article{osti_1886102,
title = {Nature and Scalings of Density Fluctuations of Compressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Applications to the Solar Wind},
author = {Fu, Xiangrong and Li 李, Hui 晖. and Gan, Zhaoming and Du, Senbei and Steinberg, John},
abstractNote = {Abstract The solar wind is a magnetized and turbulent plasma. Its turbulence is often dominated by Alfvénic fluctuations and often deemed as nearly incompressible far away from the Sun, as shown by in situ measurements near 1 au. However, for solar wind closer to the Sun, the plasma β decreases (often lower than unity) while the turbulent Mach number M t increases (can approach unity, e.g., transonic fluctuations). These conditions could produce significantly more compressible effects, characterized by enhanced density fluctuations, as seen by several space missions. In this paper, a series of 3D MHD simulations of turbulence are carried out to understand the properties of compressible turbulence, particularly the generation of density fluctuations. We find that, over a broad range of parameter space in plasma β , cross helicity, and polytropic index, the turbulent density fluctuations scale linearly as a function of M t , with the scaling coefficients showing weak dependence on parameters. Furthermore, through detailed spatiotemporal analysis, we show that the density fluctuations are dominated by low-frequency nonlinear structures, rather than compressible MHD eigenwaves. These results could be important for understanding how compressible turbulence contributes to solar wind heating near the Sun.},
doi = {10.3847/1538-4357/ac8802},
journal = {The Astrophysical Journal},
number = 2,
volume = 936,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Sep 08 00:00:00 EDT 2022},
month = {Thu Sep 08 00:00:00 EDT 2022}
}
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