Formation and Kinetic Structure of Discontinuities at the Earth's Magnetopause and at the Magnetotail

根据磁流体动力学（MHD） Rankine-Hugoniot关系，等离子体可以有六种类型的冲击：快速，慢速和四种类型的中间。考虑到慢激波在大尺度磁尾结构中发挥的重要作用，研究人员将使用二维混合和二维全粒子模拟的组合来研究它们的动力学特性。混合模拟将用于解决新发现的异常慢冲击的结构，并检查在快速Petscheck重连接配置中可能出现的慢冲击类型。完整的粒子模拟将解释在磁尾中观察到的电子分布的一些令人困惑的方面。接下来，PI将研究多个边界的动态形成及其相互作用，类似于地球磁尾和磁层顶的重联事件。通过整合这些方法并使用观测作为指导，PI将增强对不连续的一般理解，以及它们在磁层顶/磁尾中的作用。

Based on the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) Rankine-Hugoniot relations, plasmas can have six types of shocks: fast, slow, and four types of intermediate. Given the significant role slow shocks play in the large scale structure of the magnetotail, the investigators will examine their kinetic properties using a combination of two-dimensional hybrid and two-dimensional full particle simulations. Hybrid simulations will be used to address the structure of the newly discovered anomalous slow shocks, and examine the type of slow shocks possible in the fast Petscheck reconnection configuration. The full particle simulations will explain some puzzling aspects of electron distributions observed in the magnetotail. Next, the PI will examine the dynamic formation of multiple boundaries and their interactions, similar to reconnection events at both the Earth's magnetotail and magnetopause. By integrating these approaches and using observations as a guide, the PI will enhance general understanding of discontinuities in general, and their role in the magnetopause/magnetotail.