Solar Wind

The Sun continually ejects matter into space, blowing a huge bubble of supersonic plasma. This solar wind bathes the whole solar system and shapes all planetary environments. The growth of space technology has considerably increased our knowledge of this medium. This 2007 book presents an introduction to the subject, starting with basic principles and including all the latest advances from space exploration and theory. It contains a short introduction to plasma physics and discusses the structure of the solar interior and atmosphere, the production of solar wind and its perturbations. It explains the objects of the Solar System, from dust to comets and planets, and their interaction with the solar wind. The final sections explore the astrophysical point of view. The topics are treated at various levels of difficulty both qualitatively and quantitatively. This book will appeal to graduate students and researchers in earth and atmospheric sciences, and astrophysics.

Little more than ten years have passed since spaceprobe-borne instruments con clusively demonstrated the existence of the solar wind. These observations con firmed the basic validity of a theoretical model, first proposed by E. N. Parker, predicting a continuous, rapid expansion of the solar corona. The subsequent decade has seen a tremendous growth in both the breadth and sophistication of solar wind observations; the properties of the interplanetary plasma near the orbit of the earth are now known in great detail. The theory of the coronal ex pansion has also been highly refilled both in the sense of including additional physical processes, and of treating more realistic (time-dependent and non spheri cally-symmetric) coronal boundary conditions. The present volume is an attempt to synthesize the solar wind observations and coronal expansion models from this decade of rapid development. The ultimate goal is, of course, the interpretation of observed solar wind phenomena as the effects of basic physical processes occurring in the coronal and interplanetary plasma and as the natural manifestations of solar properties and structures. This approach implies an emphasis upon the "large-scale" features revealed by the observations. It requires extensive use of the concepts and methods of fluid mechanics.

The global demand for clean, renewable energy has rapidly expanded in recent years and will likely continue to escalate in the decades to come. Wind and solar energy systems often require large quantities of land and airspace, so their growing presence is generating a diverse array of new and challenging land use conflicts. Wind turbines can create noise, disrupt views or radar systems, and threaten bird populations. Solar energy projects can cause glare effects, impact pristine wilderness areas, and deplete water resources. Developers must successfully navigate through these and myriad other land use conflicts to complete any renewable energy project. Policymakers are increasingly confronted with disputes over these issues and are searching for rules to effectively govern them. Tailoring innovative policies to address the unique conflicts that arise in the context of renewable energy development is crucial to ensuring that the law facilitates rather than impedes the continued growth of this important industry. This book describes and analyses the property and land use policy questions that most commonly arise in renewable energy development. Although it focuses primarily on issues that have arisen within the United States, the book’s discussions of international policy differences and critiques of existing approaches make it a valuable resource for anyone exploring these issues in a professional setting anywhere in the world.

This volume represents the state of the art of the science covered by the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) Division IV: Solar Wind and Interplanetary Field. It contains a collection of contributions by top experts addressing and reviewing a variety of topics included under the umbrella of the division. It covers subjects that extend from the interior of the Sun to the heliopause, and from the study of physical processes in the Sun and the solar wind plasma to space weather forecasts. The book is organized in 6 parts: the solar interior, the solar atmosphere, the heliosphere, heliophysical processes, radio emissions, and coordinated science in the Sun-Earth system. In addition, we highlight some of the results presented during the IAGA Division IV symposia in the 11th Scientific Assembly of IAGA in Sopron, Hungary, on 23-30 August 2009, which was planned simultaneously with this book.

In addition to sunshine, the Sun emits about one trillion tons of ionized hydrogen per second into the interplanetary space, a phenomenon known as solar wind. This book systematizes the knowledge of the solar wind acceleration region, which is, figuratively speaking, the space weather “kitchen” similar to the Mexican gulf (where the Gulf Stream originates). The processing of unique scientific information about the solar wind at heliocentric distances up to three solar radii obtained from receiving antennas directed almost to the Sun (a challenging technical task itself) during telecommunication sessions with “Mars-2”, “Mars-4”, “Venera-10”, “Venera-15”, and “Venera-16” spacecraft, along with original approaches for modelling the solar wind acceleration region, underlie the factual basis for the book.

A comprehensive view of our Sun at the start of a new era in solar and heliospheric physics Humans have been observing and studying our Sun for centuries, yet much is still unknown about the processes that drive its behavior. Thanks to a new generation of space missions and ground telescopes, we are poised to dramatically increase our understanding of the Sun and its environment. Solar Physics and Solar Wind explores advances in solar and heliospheric research over recent decades, as well as the challenges that remain. This comprehensive reference work covers the solar interior, magnetism and radiation, plasma heating and acceleration, the sun's atmosphere, and solar activity. Volume highlights include: Explanations for processes in the solar interior New insights on the solar wind The challenges of measuring the Sun's magnetic field and its radiative output Description of solar atmospheric phenomena such as spicules and jets New developments in understanding flares and coronal mass ejections Ongoing research into how the solar corona is heated The American Geophysical Union promotes discovery in Earth and space science for the benefit of humanity. Its publications disseminate scientific knowledge and provide resources for researchers, students, and professionals. Find out more about the Space Physics and Aeronomy collection in this Q&A with the Editors in Chief

This book presents two important new findings. First, it demonstrates from first principles that turbulent heating offers an explanation for the non-adiabatic decay of proton temperature in solar wind. Until now, this was only proved with reduced or phenomenological models. Second, the book demonstrates that the two types of anisotropy of turbulent fluctuations that are observed in solar wind at 1AU originate not only from two distinct classes of conditions near the Sun but also from the imbalance in Alfvén wave populations. These anisotropies do not affect the overall turbulent heating if we take into account the relation observed in solar wind between anisotropy and Alfvén wave imbalance. In terms of the methods used to obtain these achievements, the author shows the need to find a very delicate balance between turbulent decay and expansion losses, so as to directly solve the magnetohydrodynamic equations, including the wind expansion effects.