HR: 08:00h
AN: SH51D-01 INVITED     [Abstracts]
TI: A Cross Comparison of Physical Processes in the Genesis of Coronal Mass Ejections and Plasmoids in the Earth's Magnetic Tail
AU: * Forbes, T G
EM: terry.forbes@unh.edu
AF: University of New Hampshire, EOS Institute, Morse Hall 39 College Road, Durham, NH 03824, United States
AU: Nakamura, R
EM: rumi@oeaw.ac.at
AF: Austrian Academy of Sciences, Space Research Institute Schmiedlstrasse 6, Graz, 8042, Austria
AB: Both coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and plasmoid formation in the geomagnetic tail have been characterized in terms of models that involve a slow build-up of magnetic energy followed by its sudden release. In each case the model invokes a growth phase during which the magnetic energy is stored, a trigger mechanism which releases this stored energy, and a recovery phase during which the field relaxes to a relatively low energy state. Because of these shared principles, researchers working on these two phenomena often ask similar questions. For example, "How long must the growth phase be in order to store sufficient energy?," "What is the physics of the trigger mechanism?," and "What is the role of magnetic reconnection during each phase?". There are, however, some fundamental differences between models of CMEs and plasmoid formation that prevent a one-model-fits- all approach. The field configurations prior to onset are quite different as are the properties of the plasmas in which the two phenomena occur. We assess the commonalities and differences within each phenomenon and try to determine the areas of research where a direct comparison is useful.
DE: 2101 Coronal mass ejections (7513)
DE: 2723 Magnetic reconnection (7526, 7835)
DE: 2744 Magnetotail
DE: 2764 Plasma sheet
DE: 2790 Substorms
SC: SPA-Solar and Heliospheric Physics [SH]
MN: 2007 Joint Assembly