MHD Shock Heating of Solar Coronal Holes
Abstract
The motion of the footpoints of magnetic field lines in the solar photosphere generates MHD waves that travel upward. Transverse Alfvèn modes are able to penetrate through the chromosphere and reach the corona without losing much strength. As they travel through the corona they generate MHD shock waves that convert the wave energy into plasma heating. We present the results of numerical simulations that show important amounts of plasma heating when the background field is strong and the perturbing transverse field is of comparable size. We use an adiabatic energy equation and an FCT code to accurately follow the shock formation and coronal plasma heating.
- Publication:
-
APS Division of Plasma Physics Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- November 2002
- Bibcode:
- 2002APS..DPPCP1002O