Global Explicit Particle-in-cell Simulations of the Nonstationary Bow Shock and Magnetosphere
Abstract
We carry out two-dimensional global particle-in-cell simulations of the interaction between the solar wind and a dipole field to study the formation of the bow shock and magnetosphere. A self-reforming bow shock ahead of a dipole field is presented by using relatively high temporal-spatial resolutions. We find that (1) the bow shock and the magnetosphere are formed and reach a quasi-stable state after several ion cyclotron periods, and (2) under the B z southward solar wind condition, the bow shock undergoes a self-reformation for low β I and high M A . Simultaneously, a magnetic reconnection in the magnetotail is found. For high β I and low M A , the shock becomes quasi-stationary, and the magnetotail reconnection disappears. In addition, (3) the magnetopause deflects the magnetosheath plasmas. The sheath particles injected at the quasi-perpendicular region of the bow shock can be convected downstream of an oblique shock region. A fraction of these sheath particles can leak out from the magnetosheath at the wings of the bow shock. Hence, the downstream situation is more complicated than that for a planar shock produced in local simulations.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
- Pub Date:
- July 2016
- DOI:
- 10.3847/0067-0049/225/1/13
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1607.05480
- Bibcode:
- 2016ApJS..225...13Y
- Keywords:
-
- shock waves;
- solar wind;
- plasmas;
- Astrophysics - Earth and Planetary Astrophysics;
- Physics - Space Physics
- E-Print:
- in ApJS, 2016