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The structure of rotational discontinuities
Author(s) -
Neugebauer M.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/gl016i011p01261
Subject(s) - classification of discontinuities , discontinuity (linguistics) , rotation (mathematics) , physics , magnetic field , field line , computational physics , field (mathematics) , spacecraft , solar wind , geometry , mathematical analysis , mathematics , astronomy , quantum mechanics , pure mathematics
This study examines the structures of a set of rotational discontinuities detected in the solar wind by the ISEE‐3 spacecraft. It is found that the complexity of the structure increases as the angle θ between the propagation vector k and the magnetic field decreases. For rotational discontinuities that propagate at a large angle to the field with an ion (left‐hand) sense of rotation, the magnetic hodograms tend to be flattened, in agreement with prior numerical simulations. When θ is large, angular "overshoots" are often observed at one or both ends of the discontinuity. When the propagation is nearly parallel to the field (i.e., when θ is small), many different types of structure are seen, ranging from straight lines, to S‐shaped curves, to complex, disorganized shapes.