Engineering topics

Foster, J M

Publications and source records attributed to Foster, J M.

3 records

DOE OSTI2011

FLUID DYNAMICS OF STELLAR JETS IN REAL TIME: THIRD EPOCH HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE IMAGES OF HH 1, HH 34, AND HH 47

We present new, third-epoch Hubble Space Telescope H{alpha} and [S II] images of three Herbig-Haro (HH) jets (HH 1 and 2, HH 34, and HH 47) and compare the new images with those from previous epochs. The high spatial resolution, coupled with a time series whose cadence is of order both the hydrodynamic and radiative cooling timescales of the flow, allows us to follow the hydrodynamic/magnetohydrodynamic evolution of an astrophysical plasma system in which ionization and radiative cooling play significant roles. Cooling zones behind the shocks are resolved, so it is possible to identify which way material flows through a given shock wave. The images show that heterogeneity is paramount in these jets, with clumps dominating the morphologies of both bow shocks and their Mach disks. This clumpiness exists on scales smaller than the jet widths and determines the behavior of many of the features in the jets. Evidence also exists for considerable shear as jets interact with their surrounding molecular clouds, and in several cases we observe shock waves as they form and fade where material emerges from the source and as it proceeds along the beam of the jet. Fine structure within two extended bow shocks may result from Mach stems that form at the intersection points of oblique shocks within these clumpy objects. Taken together, these observations represent the most significant foray thus far into the time domain for stellar jets, and comprise one of the richest data sets in existence for comparing the behavior of a complex astrophysical plasma flow with numerical simulations and laboratory experiments.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

DOE OSTI2010

Mach reflection in a warm dense plasma

The phenomenon of irregular shock-wave reflection is of importance in high-temperature gas dynamics, astrophysics, inertial-confinement fusion, and related fields of high-energy-density science. However, most experimental studies of irregular reflection have used supersonic wind tunnels or shock tubes, and few or no data are available for Mach reflection phenomena in the plasma regime. Similarly, analytic studies have often been confined to calorically perfect gases. We report the first direct observation, and numerical modeling, of Mach stem formation for a warm, dense plasma. Two ablatively driven aluminum disks launch oppositely directed, near-spherical shock waves into a cylindrical plastic block. The interaction of these shocks results in the formation of a Mach-ring shock that is diagnosed by x-ray backlighting. The data are modeled using radiation hydrocodes developed by AWE and LANL. The experiments were carried out at the University of Rochester's Omega laser [J. M. Soures, R. L. McCrory, C. P. Verdon et al., Phys. Plasmas 3, 2108 (1996)] and were inspired by modeling [A. M. Khokhlov, P. A. Hoeflich, E. S. Oran et al., Astrophys J. 524, L107 (1999)] of core-collapse supernovae that suggest that in asymmetric supernova explosion significant mass may be ejected in a Mach-ring formation launched by bipolar jets.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2010

Asymmetrically driven implosions

Techniques to achieve uniform near-spherical symmetry of radiation drive on a capsule in a laser-heated hohlraum have received detailed attention in the context of inertial confinement fusion. However, much less attention has been paid to the understanding of the hohlraum physics in cases where the radiation drive departs significantly from spherical symmetry. A series of experiments has been carried out to study the implosion dynamics of a capsule irradiated by a deliberately asymmetric x-ray drive. The experimental data provide a sensitive test of radiation transport in hohlraums in which drive symmetry is modulated by asymmetric laser beam timing and the use of wall materials of different albedos. Data from foam ball and thin-shell capsule experiments are presented together with modeling using consecutively linked Lagrangian and Eulerian calculational schemes. The thin-shell capsules exhibit much stronger sensitivity to early-time asymmetry than do the foam balls, and this sensitivity results in the formation of a well-defined polar jet. These data are shown to challenge computational modeling in this highly asymmetric convergent regime. All of the experiments detailed were carried out at the OMEGA laser facility [J. M. Soures, R. L. McCrory, C. P. Verdon et al., Phys. Plasmas 3, 2108 (1996)] at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics in Rochester, NY.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗