Multi-fluid and Hybrid Models of Waves in Coronal Structures

Catholic University Of America, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

Modeling of the fast solar wind and streamers will be carried out based on a pair of interlaced computer codes. One will be a 3D three-fluid code encompassing electrons, protons and one species of heavy ion. The other is a kinetic hybrid code where the protons and heavy ions are treated as particles and the electrons as a fluid. The hybrid code will be used to study the effect of high-frequency kinetic Alfven waves on the distribution functions, and in particular to determine the damping of these waves and their heating of the plasma. The results will be incorporated in the fluid simulation, and the results compared with observations, like ion flow speeds and effective temperature, derived from instruments on board SOHO and TRACE.