A prescription for the turbulent heating of astrophysical plasmas

The ion-to-electron heating ratio due to the dissipation of Alfvenic turbulence in astrophysical plasmas is calculated based on a cascade model for turbulence in weakly collisional plasmas. Conditions for validity of this model are discussed, a prescription for the turbulent heating is presented and it is applied to predict turbulent heating in accretion discs and the interstellar medium.