Open AccessShock wave interaction with the magnetopause
Author(s) -
Wu C. C.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: space physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.67
H-Index - 298
eISSN - 2156-2202
pISSN - 0148-0227
DOI - 10.1029/1999ja000197
Subject(s) - magnetopause , physics , instability , magnetosphere , shock wave , geophysics , magnetohydrodynamics , mechanics , shock (circulatory) , magnetic field , discontinuity (linguistics) , magnetic reconnection , magnetosheath , bow shock (aerodynamics) , classical mechanics , medicine , mathematical analysis , mathematics , quantum mechanics
The magnetopause is in continuous motion and shock waves and impulsive acceleration events can occur. In fluid dynamics, when a shock wave encounters a fluid discontinuity, the interface may become unstable and form bubbles and spikes. We consider this Richtmyer‐Meshkov instability in magnetohydrodynamics through a set of numerical calculations for the magnetopause configurations. We suggest that the instability may be a mechanism for generating transient events in the magnetosphere. At the dayside magnetopause, the instability tends to be stabilized by the magnetic field. Instead, the shock wave interaction can initiate magnetic field reconnection for the southward IMF, which may connect with the onset of substorms.