Parameter space study of magnetohydrodynamic flows around magnetized compact objects

We solve the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations governing axisymmetric flows around neutron stars and black holes and found all possible solution topologies for adiabatic accretion. We divide the parameter space spanned by the conserved energy and angular momentum of the flow in terms of the flow topologies. We also study the possibility of the formation of the MHD shock waves.Comment: 3 pages; 4 figures; prepared on the basis of the talk presented in the MG11 Meeting on General Relativity, Berlin, July 23-29, 200

Nonlinear theory of non-axisymmetric resonant slow waves in straight magnetic flux tubes

Nonlinear resonant slow magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) waves are studied in weakly dissipative isotropic plasmas for a cylindrical equilibrium model. The equilibrium magnetic field lines are unidirectional and parallel with the z axis. The nonlinear governing equations for resonant slow magnetoacoustic (SMA) waves are derived. Using the method of matched asymptotic expansions inside and outside the narrow dissipative layer, we generalize the connection formulae for the Eulerian perturbation of the total pressure and for the normal component of the velocity. These nonlinear connection formulae in dissipative cylindrical MHD are an important extention of the connection formulae obtained in linear ideal MHD [Sakurai et al., Solar Phys. 133, 227 (1991)], linear dissipative MHD [Goossens et al., Solar Phys. 175, 75 (1995); Erdélyi, Solar Phys. 171, 49 (1997)] and in nonlinear dissipative MHD derived in slab geometry [Ruderman et al., Phys. Plasmas4, 75 (1997)]. These generalized connection formulae enable us to connect the solutions at both sides of the dissipative layer without solving the MHD equations in the dissipative layer. We also show that the nonlinear interaction of harmonics in the dissipative layer is responsible for generating a parallel mean flow outside the dissipative layer

Properties of mass-loading shocks, 2. Magnetohydrodynamics

The one-dimensional magnetohydrodynamics of shocked flows subjected to significant mass loading are considered. Recent observations at comets Giacobini-Zinner and Halley suggest that simple nonreacting MHD is an inappropriate description for active cometary bow shocks. The thickness of the observed cometary shock implies that mass loading represents an important dynamical process within the shock itself, thereby requiring that the Rankine-Hugoniot condition for the mass flux possess a source term. In a formal sense, this renders mass-loading shocks qualitatively similar to combustion shocks, except that mass loading induces the shocked flow to shear. Nevertheless, a large class of stable shocks exist, identified by means of the Lax conditions appropriate to MHD. Thus mass-loading shocks represent a new and interesting class of shocks, which, although found frequently in the solar system, both at the head of comets and, under suitable conditions, upsteam of weakly magnetized and nonmagnetized planets, has not been discussed in any detail. Owing to the shearing of the flow, mass-loading shocks can behave like switch-on shocks regardless of the magnitude of the plasma beta. Thus the behavior of the magnetic field in mass-loading shocks is significantly different from that occurring in nonreacting classical MHD shocks. It is demonstrated that there exist two types of mass-loading fronts for which no classical MHD analogue exists, these being the fast and slow compound mass-loading shocks. These shocks are characterized by an initial deceleration of the fluid flow to either the fast or the slow magnetosonic speed followed by an isentropic expansion to the final decelerated downstream state. Thus these transitions take the flow from a supersonic to a supersonic, although decelerated, downstream state, unlike shocks which occur in classical MHD or gasdynamics. It is possible that such structures have been observed during the Giotto-Halley encounter, and a brief discussion of the appropriate Halley parameters is therefore given, together with a short discussion of the determination of the shock normal from observations. A further interesting new form of mass-loading shock is the “slow-intermediate” shock, a stable shock which possesses many of the properties of intermediate MHD shocks yet which propagates like a slow mode MHD shock. An important property of mass-loading shocks is the large parameter regime (compared with classical MHD) which does not admit simple or stable transitions from a given upstream to a downstream state. This suggests that it is often necessary to construct compound structures consisting of shocks, slip waves, rarefactions, and fast and slow compound waves in order to connect given upstream and downstream states. Thus the Riemann problem is significantly different from that of classical MHD

Decay of isotropic flow and anisotropic flow with rotation or magnetic field or both in a weakly nonlinear regime

We investigate numerically the decay of isotropic, rotating, magnetohydrodynamic (MHD), and rotating MHD flows in a periodic box. The Reynolds number $Re$ defined with the box size and the initial velocity is $100$ at which the flows are in a weakly nonlinear regime, i.e. not laminar but far away from the fully turbulent state. The decay of isotropic flow has two stages, the first stage for the development of small scales and the second stage for the viscous dissipation. In the rapidly rotating flow, fast rotation induces the inertial wave and causes the large-scale structure to inhibit the development of the first stage and retard the flow decay. In the MHD flow, the imposed field also causes the large-scale structure but facilitates the flow decay in the first stage because of the energy conversion from flow to magnetic field. Magnetic Reynolds number $Rm$ is important for the dynamics of the MHD flow, namely a high $Rm$ induces the Alfv\'en wave but a low $Rm$ cannot. In the rotating MHD flow, slower rotation tends to convert more kinetic energy to magnetic energy. The orientation between the rotational and magnetic axes is important for the dynamics of the rotating MHD flow, namely the energy conversion is more efficient and the stronger wave is induced when the two axes are not parallel than when they are parallel.Comment: 11 figures, 1 table, Acta Mechanica, 201