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TanDokoro & Fujimoto 2005
TanDokoro, R. and Fujimoto, M. (2005). Three-dimensional MHD simulation study of the structure at the leading part of a reconnection jet. Geophysical Research Letters 32: doi: 10.1029/2005GL024467. issn: 0094-8276.

We have performed three-dimensional MHD simulations of magnetic reconnection to investigate the structure of a reconnection jet. Our simulation results show that the leading edge of a reconnection jet deforms to put on a significantly complicated structure. In a randomly perturbed environment, smaller scale structure develops rapidly and finally the front of the reconnection jet becomes turbulent. In contrast when the initial perturbation is composed of a single sinusoidal mode, coherent magnetic bubbles are generated. The magnetic bubbles elongate significantly when the wavelength is small giving onset to a secondary instability that may subsequently lead to turbulence. We interpret the deformation of the jet front to be due to excitation of the Rayleigh-Taylor/ballooning-like instability and emphasize the significance of the three-dimensionality in considering the dynamics of a reconnection jet.

BACKGROUND DATA FILES

Abstract

Keywords
Space Plasma Physics, Magnetic reconnection (2723, 7526), Space Plasma Physics, MHD waves and instabilities (2149, 2752, 6050), Solar Physics, Astrophysics, and Astronomy, Flares
Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
http://www.agu.org/journals/gl/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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