Magnetic reconnection at planetary bodies and astrospheres
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental mechanism for the transport of mass and energy in planetary magnetospheres and astrospheres. While the process of reconnection is itself ubiquitous across a multitude of systems, the techniques used for its analysis can vary across scientific disciplines. Here we frame the latest understanding of reconnection theory by missions such as NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission for use throughout the solar system and beyond. We discuss how reconnection can couple magnetized obstacles to both sub- and super-magnetosonic upstream flows. In addition, we address the need to model sheath plasmas and field-line draping around an obstacle to accurately parameterize the possibility for reconnection to occur. We conclude with a discussion of how reconnection energy conversion rates scale throughout the solar system. The results presented are not only applicable to within our solar system but also to astrospheres and exoplanets, such as the first recently detected exoplanet magnetosphere of HAT-11-1b.
Date Issued
2024-01-19
Date Acceptance
2023-10-12
Citation
Space Science Reviews, 2024, 220
ISSN
0038-6308
Publisher
Springer
Journal / Book Title
Space Science Reviews
Volume
220
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2024 Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Subjects
Astronomy & Astrophysics
Astrospheres
BOW SHOCK
DAYSIDE MAGNETOPAUSE RECONNECTION
FLUX-TRANSFER EVENTS
INDUCED MAGNETOSPHERE
INFLOW ALFVEN SPEED
ION TEMPERATURE ANISOTROPY
Magnetized obstacle
Magnetosheath
MESSENGER OBSERVATIONS
Physical Sciences
Planetary magnetospheres
Plasma beta
PLASMA DEPLETION
Reconnection
Science & Technology
SOLAR-WIND INTERACTION
TRAVELING COMPRESSION REGIONS
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
7
Date Publish Online
2024-01-19