SPRG Seminars
January 18, 2011:
"Anisotropy of Solar Wind Turbulence"
Christopher Chen, Space Science Lab
The solar wind is a turbulent plasma with fluctuations at a broad range of scales. One aspect of this turbulence that differentiates it from neutral fluid turbulence is anisotropy with respect to the magnetic field direction. This anisotropy is fundamental to our understanding of the solar wind but has only recently started being measured in detail. In this talk, I will present some recent multi-spacecraft measurements of various types of anisotropy in the inertial range and dissipation range of the solar wind and in numerical simulations. I will discuss the physical implications of the measurements for our understanding of plasma turbulence and solar wind heating.