Magnetic reconnection under anisotropic magnetohydrodynamic approximation
- Department of Earth and Planetary Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo (Japan)
We study the formation of slow-mode shocks in collisionless magnetic reconnection by using one- and two-dimensional collisionless MHD codes based on the double adiabatic approximation and the Landau closure model. We bridge the gap between the Petschek-type MHD reconnection model accompanied by a pair of slow shocks and the observational evidence of the rare occasion of in-situ slow shock observations. Our results showed that once magnetic reconnection takes place, a firehose-sense (p{sub ∥}>p{sub ⊥}) pressure anisotropy arises in the downstream region, and the generated slow shocks are quite weak comparing with those in an isotropic MHD. In spite of the weakness of the shocks, however, the resultant reconnection rate is 10%–30% higher than that in an isotropic case. This result implies that the slow shock does not necessarily play an important role in the energy conversion in the reconnection system and is consistent with the satellite observation in the Earth's magnetosphere.
- OSTI ID:
- 22218411
- Journal Information:
- Physics of Plasmas, Vol. 20, Issue 11; Other Information: (c) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1070-664X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
ADIABATIC APPROXIMATION
ANISOTROPY
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
COMPUTER CODES
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
EARTH MAGNETOSPHERE
ENERGY CONVERSION
MAGNETIC RECONNECTION
MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMICS
PLASMA
PLASMA PRESSURE
PLASMA SIMULATION
SHOCK WAVES
TWO-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS