HR: 0800h
AN: SH51A-05    [Abstracts]
TI: Three-dimensional, Multi-fluid Model of the Heliospheric Interface
AU: Kryukov, I A
EM: igor.kryukov@ucr.edu
AF: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521, United States
AU: * Pogorelov, N V
EM: nikolaip@ucr.edu
AF: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521, United States
AU: Borovikov, S N
EM: sergeyb@ucr.edu
AF: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521, United States
AU: Zank, G P
EM: zank@ucr.edu
AF: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521, United States
AB: The problem of the solar wind (SW) interaction with the local interstellar medium (LISM), as many other physical phenomena, exhibits a multi-scale behavior. It is characterized by the disparity of scales in time and space, all of which must be properly resolved. The encounter of a supersonic source flow of the SW with a supersonic LISM flow creates a tangential discontinuity (the heliopause, HP). The SW consists of charged particles (mostly hydrogen ions), while the LISM is only partially ionized, being essentially a mixture of hydrogen ions and atoms. It is common to model the plasma interaction using ideal MHD equations. Neutral hydrogen influence on the heliospheric interface reveals itself via charge exchange between charged and neutral particles. The application of a multifluid approach for for modeling the transport of neutral particles proves to be particularly useful for unsteady interactions regimes. Since both plasma flows are supersonic, the interaction pattern involves a bow shock and a SW termination shock. Adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) techniques address the issue of disparate space scales. While preserving most of the advantages of regular gridding, an AMR covers areas that need higher resolution with increasingly fine grid patches. For time-dependent problems finer meshes are also advanced with smaller time steps. We present the first results of a 3D, AMR, multi-fluid modeling of the heliospheric interface for the LISM parameters agreeable with the observed and/or theoretically predicted asymmetries of the termination shock and the deviation between the neutral hydrogen and neutral helium flows at distances of about 10 AU from the Sun. A number of numerical tests are presented for 3D, multi-shock plasma flows.
DE: 2124 Heliopause and solar wind termination
DE: 2126 Heliosphere/interstellar medium interactions
DE: 2134 Interplanetary magnetic fields
DE: 2151 Neutral particles (7837)
SC: SPA-Solar and Heliospheric Physics [SH]
MN: 2007 Joint Assembly