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Results for “resistive instabilities”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 73 records · Page 4
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Numerical simulation of solar coronal magnetic fields

Many aspects of solar activity are believed to be due to the stressing of the coronal magnetic field by footpoint motions at the photosphere. The results are presented of a fully spectral numerical simulation which is the first 3-D time dependent simulation of footpoint stressing in a geometry appropriate for the corona. An arcade is considered that is initially current-free and impose a smooth footpoint motion that produces a twist in the field of approx 2 pi. The footprints were fixed and the evolution was followed until the field relaxes to another current-free state. No evidence was seen for any instability, either ideal or resistive and no evidence for current sheet formation. The most striking feature of the evolution is that in response to photospheric motions, the field expands rapidly upward to minimize the stress. The expansion has two important effects. First, it suppresses the development of dips in the field that could support dense, cool material. For the motions assumed, the magnetic field does not develop a geometry suitable for prominence formation. Second, the expansion inhibits ideal instabilities such as kinking. The results indicate that simple stearing of a single arcade is unlikely to lead to solar activity such as flares or prominences. Effects are discussed that might possibly lead to such activity.

Dahlburg, Russell B.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Radiation-induced instability and its relation to radiation carcinogenesis

PURPOSE: A model that identifies radiation-induced genetic instability as the earliest cellular event in the multi-step sequence leading to radiation-induced cancer was previously proposed. In this paper ongoing experiments are discussed which are designed to test this model and its predictions in mouse mammary epithelial cells. RESULTS: Several lines of evidence are presented that appear to support this model: first, the development of delayed mutations in p53 following irradiation in altered growth variants; secondly, the high frequencies for the induction of both instability and transformation following irradiation in mammary epithelial cells; and finally, the demonstration that susceptibility to the induction of cytogenetic instability is a heritable trait that correlates with susceptibility to transformation and radiation-induced mammary cancer. Mice resistant to transformation and mammary cancer development are also resistant to the development of instability after irradiation. In contrast, mice sensitive to transformation and cancer are also sensitive to the development of cytogenetic instability. CONCLUSIONS: Data from this laboratory and from the studies cited above suggest a specific, and perhaps unique, role for radiation-induced instability as a critical early event associated with initiation of the carcinogenic process.

Review↗
NASA NTRS1985

Return currents in solar flares - Collisionless effects

If the primary, precipitating electrons in a solar flare are unstable to beam plasma interactions, it is shown that strong Langmuir turbulence can seriously modify the way in which a return current is carried by the background plasma. In particular, the return (or reverse) current will not be carried by the bulk of the electrons, but by a small number of high velocity electrons. For beam/plasma densities greater than 0.01, this can reduce the effects of collisions on the return current. For higher density beams where the return current could be unstable to current driven instabilities, the effects of strong turbulence anomalous resistivity is shown to prevent the appearance of such instabilities. Again in this regime, how the return current is carried is determined by the beam generated strong turbulence.

Rowland, H. L.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Nonlinear evolution of the resistive tearing mode

The nonlinear behavior of the tearing instability is investigated with the aid of numerical solutions of the resistive incompressible magnetohydrodynamic equations. This study is directed toward solar applications, such as flares. Simulations were carried out for values of the Lundquist number S from 100 to 1,000,000 and wavelength parameter alpha from 0.042 to 0.5. The influence of linear conditions, such as the constancy of psi, on nonlinear growth characteristics is investigated. For high S and low alpha, secondary-flow vortices, opposite in direction to the linear vortices, were found to generate a new magnetic island centered at the initial X point. The nonlinear spatial distributions of the physical variables differ greatly from the linear behavior, and growth slows considerably once nonlinear effects become important.

Steinolfson, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS1985

A unified treatment of the filament and flare instabilities

An integrated theory of cooling and resistive reconnection processes in flares and filaments of a sheared magnetic structure is proposed. Thermal and tearing phenomena in the structure were coupled by means of a temperature-dependent Coulomb instability, and the relevant linearized equations were solved numerically over a range of parameters. It is shown that an increase in the growth rate of instabilities in the structure was associated with a significant amount of magnetic reconnection, particularly at shorter wavelengths. Long wavelength reconnection was abetted by an increase in Coulomb resistivity due to the dominance of cooling at the X-point. Some implications of the above results for current models of solar coronal reconnection processes are discussed.

Van Hoven, G.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Simulation of the current-driven electrostatic ion cyclotron instability

Results are presented of a self-consistent particle simulation of the growth and saturation of electrostatic ion cyclotron (EIC) waves along auroral field lines. The driving mechanism for the waves is an initial drifting Maxwellian distribution for the electrons. The magnetic field is taken to lie in the simulation plane, so that modes such as the ion acoustic instability and the EIC instability can be excited, thus making it possible to study the behavior of EIC waves in the presence of ion acoustic turbulence. A dc electric field, which tends to keep the current constant along the field lines, is included. It is shown that the EIC instability grows to a moderate level before saturating due to plateau formation. The perpendicular ion temperature increases by typically 40%, with an increase arising from bulk heating only. The anomalous resistivity, associated with the EIC instability is determined and compared with previous calculations and with that due to the ion acoustic instability. Implications of the results for observation of ion cyclotron waves on auroral field lines are discussed.

Pritchett, P. L.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Mechanisms for fast flare reconnection

Normal collisional-resistivity mechanisms of magnetic reconnection have the drawback that they are too slow to explain the fast rise of solar flares. Two methods are examined which are proposed for the speed-up of the magnetic tearing instability: the anomalous enhancement of resistivity by the injection of MHD turbulence and the increase of Coulomb resistivity by radiative cooling. The results are described for nonlinear numerical simulations of these processes which show that the first does not provide the claimed effects, while the second yields impressive rates of reconnection, but low saturated energy outputs.

Vanhoven, G.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Elastic-plastic fracture mechanics technology

Among the topics discussed are: fracture analysis methods evaluation; instability prediction using the K sub R-curve approach; and the deformation failure assessment diagram. Consideration is also given to: instability prediction based on the modified J, J sub M-resistance curve approach; and stable crack growth and instability prediction on the V by means of the V sub R-curve method.

Newman, J. C., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Polarization of the auroral electrojet

Precipitation from the inner edge of the electron plasma sheet creates a density maximum in the auroral oval ionosphere, which in turn leads to Hall and Pedersen conductance maxima. A uniform westward convection electric field is imposed upon the lower ionosphere previous to polarization. Field-aligned currents flow into the ionosphere equatorward, and out poleward, of the Hall conductance maximum. As the convection field and ionospheric density increase during substorm growth phase, the field-aligned current densities eventually reach an instability threshold, beyond which anomalous resistance produces field-aligned electric fields. The partial blockage of the field-aligned currents produces an equatorward electric field and therefore a partial Cowling conductivity in the lower ionosphere.

Coroniti, F. V.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Polarization of the auroral electrojet.

Consideration of an idealized model of electrojet polarization. Precipitation from the inner edge of the electron plasma sheet creates a density maximum in the auroral-oval ionosphere, which in turn leads to Hall and Pedersen conductance maximums. It is then assumed that a uniform westward convection electric field is imposed on the lower ionosphere before polarization. Field-aligned currents must flow into the ionosphere equatorward and out of the ionosphere poleward of the Hall conductance maximum. As the convection field and ionospheric density increase during the substorm growth phase, the field-aligned current densities should eventually reach an instability threshold beyond which anomalous resistance should produce field-aligned electric fields. The partial blockage of the field-aligned currents produces an equatorward electric field and therefore a partial Cowling conductivity in the lower ionosphere. Rough numerical estimates indicate that the expected field-aligned currents can exceed the stability threshold estimated by Kindel and Kennel (1971), that 1- to 5-kV field-aligned potential drops correspond to significant electrojet enhancement, and that the required energy dissipation of field-aligned currents in the topside ionosphere, a few ergs/per sq cm per sec column, suggests significant topside modification following auroral breakup.

Coroniti, F. V.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Radiative tearing - Magnetic reconnection on a fast thermal-instability time scale

Two energy modification mechanisms which are known to occur in sheared magnetic fields are the tearing and thermal instabilities. These processes can be studied separately with formalisms incorporating just the effective driving mechanism of interest (finite resistivity for the tearing mode and unstable radiation for the thermal mode). A model which includes both effects, and a temperature-dependent resistivity, indicates that modified forms of these two instabilities may coexist for identical physical conditions. When they are isolated computationally, one can show that their limiting growth rates are approximately those of the uncoupled instabilities. The spatial structure and energy content of these two new hybrid processes are then individually examined and are found to differ considerably from those obtained from separate treatments of the driving mechanisms. The faster radiative instability, which has a hydromagnetically scaled growth rate like the condensation mode of the thermal instability, is shown to involve a substantial amount of magnetic field reconnection. This can be partially explained by a large temperature drop (or resistivity rise) at the X-point. The island width of the Coulomb-coupled radiative mode is 30 percent of that produced by a comparable level of the slower tearing instability. In addition, the perturbed magnetic energy in the radiative instability is 5 times that of the perturbed thermal energy, indicating an appreciable modification of the initial magnetic structure.

Steinolfson, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS1979

The energetics of resistive magnetic tearing

A new treatment of the energetics of resistive magnetic tearing is presented. This instability is the only known field-reconnection mechanism which develops in time, and is thus a primary candidate for a number of astrophysical 'flare' processes occurring in stressed magnetic fields. The tearing process is elucidated by a subdivision into magnetic regions of different characteristics: first, as dominated by resistive or highly conductive dynamics, and then by function as a source or sink of the energy flux. Matching conditions between these zones provide a determination of the growth rate and its physical-parameter dependence. The observable plasma energy outputs, due mainly to two distinct magnetically driven acceleration mechanisms, are estimated and their directive spatial properties shown. Finally, the generality of resistive tearing is demonstrated by an application of the previous considerations to realistic sheared-field configurations, including the case of a solar coronal loop, for which flare-instability thresholds and energy-deposition sites are described.

Van Hoven, G.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Passive suppression of pogo on the space shuttle

A qualitative assessment of the tendency for pogo instability of the shuttle vehicle in the absence of suppression devices, and the effectiveness of two passive suppressors (the compliant accumulator and the resistive accumulator) in counteracting any tendency toward instability is provided. In addition, the relative effectiveness of three suppressor locations (the low pressure pump (LWOP) inlet and discharge and the high pressure pump (HPOP) inlet) is also evaluated. The primary conclusion of the study is that effective pogo suppression, with passive devices, can be accomplished at the HPOP inlet location but not at the LPOP locations. Other conclusions are drawn regarding the relative effectiveness of the two accumulator types and with respect to tentative accumulator design requirements. Finally, a number of recommendations are made regarding future studies.

Lock, M. H.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Energy dynamics in stressed magnetic fields - The filamentation and flare instabilities

The thermal and tearing instabilities are believed to be the two primary temperature modification mechanisms in sheared astrophysical magnetic fields. The former gives rise to the formation of cool filaments and the latter to the release of magnetic energy. It has long been known that these processes are interrelated, most conspicuously in the case of the solar corona where prominences often precede flares within the same magnetic structure. It is also clear, from first principles, that the energy transport underlying the thermal instability should have a strong effect on the resistivity which facilitates magnetic tearing, and that the energy release of the latter should affect the temperature drop of the former. This paper describes some results of the first calculations which attempt to unify the dynamic treatment of these two coexisting instabilities. Growth rates as a function of resistivity, and examples of the primary mode structures are provided, along with a discussion of some critical aspects of the interaction of these two astrophysical energy flux mechanisms.

Van Hoven, G.↗
NASA NTRS1991

The apparent strain stability and repeatability of a BCL3 resistance strain gage

Experiments were conducted at NASA-Lewis to study the effect of microstructural instability on the apparent strain stability and reproducibility of a BCL3 resistance strain gage. The resistance drift of the gage at various temperatures in the phase transition temperature range (PTTR) was measured. The effects of the heating and cooling rates with which the gage passed through the PTTR on the apparent strain characteristics of the gage were also studied. BCL3 gage, like other Fe-Cr-Al based gages, exhibited apparent strain instability in the temperature range of 700 to 1100 F due to the reversible microstructural transition the gage materials experienced in this temperature range. The BCL3 gage had a maximum apparent strain drift in the neighborhood of 770 F with an average drift rate of approx. -440 microstrain/hr in 2 hrs. The use of the BCL3 gage as well as other Fe-Cl-Al based gages for static strain measurements within the PTTR should be avoided unless the time durations in the PTTR are small enough to introduce a neglible drift. The microstructure transition that the BCL3 gage underwent occurred in the temperature range of 750 to 1050 F during heating and around 1000 to 800 F during cooling. The heating rate, and, in particular, the cooling rate with which the gage passed through the PTTR affected the shape and the repeatability of the apparent strain curve of the gage.

Lei, Jih-Fen↗
NASA NTRS2017

A Universal Model for Solar Eruptions

Magnetically driven eruptions on the Sun, from stellar-scale coronal mass ejections1 to small-scale coronal X-ray and extreme-ultraviolet jets, have frequently been observed to involve the ejection of the highly stressed magnetic flux of a filament. Theoretically, these two phenomena have been thought to arise through very different mechanisms: coronal mass ejections from an ideal (non-dissipative) process, whereby the energy release does not require a change in the magnetic topology, as in the kink or torus instability; and coronal jets from a resistive process, involving magnetic reconnection. However, it was recently concluded from new observations that all coronal jets are driven by filament ejection, just like large mass ejections. This suggests that the two phenomena have physically identical origin and hence that a single mechanism may be responsible, that is, either mass ejections arise from reconnection, or jets arise from an ideal instability. Here we report simulations of a coronal jet driven by filament ejection, whereby a region of highly sheared magnetic field near the solar surface becomes unstable and erupts. The results show that magnetic reconnection causes the energy release via 'magnetic breakout', a positive feedback mechanism between filament ejection and reconnection. We conclude that if coronal mass ejections and jets are indeed of physically identical origin (although on different spatial scales) then magnetic reconnection (rather than an ideal process) must also underlie mass ejections, and that magnetic breakout is a universal model for solar eruptions.

Wyper, Peter F.↗
NASA NTRS2022

Impact of 3D Structure on Magnetic Reconnection

Results from 2.5D and 3D studies of the onset and development of the tearing instability are presented, using high fidelity resistive MHD simulations. A limited parameter study of the strength of the reconnecting field (or shear angle) was performed. An initially simple 1D equilibrium was used, consisting of a modified force-free current sheet, with periodic boundary conditions in all directions. In all cases, the linear and nonlinear evolution led to a primary current sheet between two large flux ropes. The global reconnection rate during this later stage was analyzed in all simulations. It was found that in 2.5D the primary current sheet fragmented owing to plasmoids, and as expected, the global reconnection rate, calculated using multiple methods, increases with the strength of the reconnecting field owing to a stronger Alfvén speed. In 3D, the presence of interacting oblique modes of the tearing instability complicates the simple 2.5D picture, entangling the magnetic field of the inflow and introducing a negative effect on the reconnection rate. The two competing effects of stronger Alfvén speed and entangling, which both increase with the strength of the reconnecting field, resulted in a decrease in the reconnection rate with increasing reconnecting field. For all simulations, the 3D rates were less than in 2.5D but suggest that as one goes to weak reconnecting field (or strong guide field) the system becomes more 2.5D-like and the 2.5D and 3D rates converge. These results have relevance to situations like nanoflare heating and flare current sheets in the corona.

Lars K S Daldorff↗