Journal
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SPACE PHYSICS
Volume 109, Issue A7, Pages -Publisher
AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION
DOI: 10.1029/2003JA010313
Keywords
solar wind; 2-D MHD solar wind model; Alfven wave-driven solar wind; proton temperature anisotropy
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
We present the first two-dimensional (2-D) Alfven wave turbulence-driven solar wind model which takes the proton temperature anisotropy into account. While the modeled proton temperature anisotropy in the fast solar wind is established in the inner corona and yields T-p(parallel to)/T-p(perpendicular to)=0.57 at 1 AU, which is comparable to measured values, T-p(parallel to) and T-p(perpendicular to) are only about half the observed values. In the slow wind, on the other hand, the modeled values for T-p(parallel to) and T-p(perpendicular to) as well as their ratio are close to those measured in interplanetary space. Curiously, the dip in the velocity that develops near the cusp at the top of the helmet streamer reduces the effect of transverse expansion and leads to a realistic electron temperature in the slow wind at 1 AU, although no explicit external heating is applied to electrons. Comparison with models with and without proton temperature anisotropy shows that by allowing the proton temperature anisotropy to develop, the average proton temperature is lower than the isotropic case primarily because of the cooling in the direction parallel to the magnetic field. These results imply that ion cyclotron resonance models with isotropic proton temperature are somewhat optimistic in assessing the role of Alfven wave turbulence in driving the fast solar wind. Inclusion of the temperature anisotropy of protons and proton thermal conduction are necessary for any physically realistic model.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available