The Linear Instability of Astrophysical Flames in Magnetic Fields

Supernovae of Type Ia are used as standard candles for cosmological observations despite the as yet incomplete understanding of their explosion mechanism. In one model, these events are thought to result from subsonic burning in the core of an accreting Carbon/Oxygen white dwarf that is accelerated through flame wrinkling and flame instabilities. Many such white dwarfs have significant magnetic fields. Here we derive the linear effects of such magnetic fields on one flame instability, the well-known Landau-Darrieus instability. When the magnetic field is strong enough that the flame is everywhere sub-Alfvenic, the instability can be greatly suppressed. Super-Alfvenic flames are much less affected by the field, with flames propagating parallel to the field somewh at destabilized, and flames propagating perpendicular to the field somewhat stabili zed. Trans-Alfvenic parallel flames, however, like trans-Alfvenic parallel shocks, are seen to be non-evolutionary; understanding the behavior of these flames will require careful numerical simulation.Comment: 31 pp, 11 fig, submitted to Ap

Solar Wind Turbulence and the Role of Ion Instabilities

International audienc

Late Frasnian Atrypida [Brachiopoda] from the South Urals, South Timan and Kuznetsk Basin [Russia]

Late Frasnian Atrypida (Brachiopoda) from the South Urals, South Timan and Kuznetsk Basin in Russia (east Laurussian and south Siberian shelf domains in Devonian time) reveal significant generic and specific diversity in the broadly defined Frasnian-Famennian (F-F) bio-crisis time. Eighteen species of atrypid brachiopods have been recorded, representing 4 subfamilies and 10 genera. The new genus Gibberosatrypa Markovskii & Rzhonsnitskaya, and the new subgenus Spinatrypa (Plicspinatrypa) Rzhonsnitskaya are proposed. Four new species Spinatrypina (Spinatrypina) sosnovkiensis Yudina, Spinatrypa (Plicspinatrypa) rossica Rzhonsnitskaya, Iowatrypa nalivkini Rzhonsnitskaya & Sokiran, and Cartnatina(?) biohermica Yudina are described. The representatives of the Variatrypinae (including especially common Desquamatia (Desquamatia) alticoliformis), Spinatrypinae (Spinatrypina) and Atypinae (Pseudoatrypa, ?Costatrypa) are widely distributed in the studied regions. The Pseudogruenewaldtiinae are represented by Iowatrypa and Pseudogruenewaldtia, of which the first is distributed worldwide, whereas the only undoubted species of the second is restricted to South Timan, and probably represents a localized latest Frasnian descendant of Iowatrypa. The decline phase of atrypid development was controlled by a variety of environmental factors tied to the global Kellwasser events, although it was not directly triggered by anoxic conditions. The investigated atrypid brachiopods, which were all confined to lower latitudes, disappeared during the F-F mass extinction, independently of their environmental and biogeographic settings