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Results for “magnetohydrodynamical simulations”

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NASA NTRS1992

Relative timing of substorm features in MHD simulations

An investigation of the temporal sequence of substorm phenomena based on three dimensional MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) simulations of magnetic reconnection and plasmoid formation is presented. The investigation utilizes a spatially localized resistivity model which leads to a significantly faster evolution than found in previous investigations. The analysis of the results concentrates on substorm features that have received considerable attention in the past. The formation of magnetic neutral lines, the occurrence of fast flows directed both earthward and tailward, and the magnetic field changes leading to the formation of the substorm current wedge, and to the depolarization of the magnetic field earthward of the reconnection region and its dependence on the spatial distribution of resistivity, are discussed. These phenomena are seen as an integral part of the nonlinear evolution of the three dimensional tearing instability.

Hesse, Michael↗

DOE OSTI2021

Formation and evolution of protostellar accretion discs – II. From 3D simulation to a simple semi-analytic model of Class 0/I discs

Here we use a 3D radiative non-ideal magnetohydrodynamic simulation to investigate the formation and evolution of a young protostellar disc from a magnetized pre-stellar core. The simulation covers the first ${\sim }10\, {\rm kyr}$ after protostar formation and shows a massive, weakly magnetized disc with radius that initially grows and then saturates at ${\sim }30\, {\rm au}$. The disc is gravitationally unstable with prominent large-amplitude spiral arms. We use our simulation results and a series of physical arguments to construct a predictive and quantitative physical picture of Class 0/I protostellar disc evolution from several aspects, including (i) the angular-momentum redistribution in the disc, self-regulated by gravitational instability to make most of the disc marginally unstable; (ii) the thermal profile of the disc, well-approximated by a balance between radiative cooling and accretion heating; and (iii) the magnetic-field strength and magnetic-braking rate inside the disc, regulated by non-ideal magnetic diffusion. Using these physical insights, we build a simple 1D semi-analytic model of disc evolution. We show that this 1D model, when coupled to a computationally inexpensive simulation for the evolution of the surrounding pseudo-disc, can be used reliably to predict disc evolution in the Class 0/I phase. The predicted long-term evolution of disc size, which saturates at ${\sim }30\, {\rm au}$ and eventually shrinks, is consistent with a recent observational survey of Class 0/I discs. Such hierarchical modelling of disc evolution circumvents the computational difficulty of tracing disc evolution through Class 0/I phase with direct, numerically converged simulations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2025

Mahakala: A Python-based Modular Ray-tracing and Radiative Transfer Algorithm for Curved Spacetimes

We introduce Mahakala, a Python-based, modular, radiative ray-tracing code for curved spacetimes. We employ Google's JAX framework for accelerated automatic differentiation, which can efficiently compute Christoffel symbols directly from the metric, allowing the user to easily and quickly simulate photon trajectories through non-Kerr spacetimes. JAX also enables Mahakala to run in parallel on both CPUs and GPUs. Mahakala natively uses the Cartesian Kerr–Schild coordinate system, which avoids numerical issues caused by the pole in spherical coordinate systems. We demonstrate Mahakala's capabilities by simulating 1.3 mm wavelength images (the wavelength of Event Horizon Telescope observations) of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of low-accretion rate supermassive black holes. The modular nature of Mahakala allows us to quantitatively explore how different regions of the flow influence different image features. We show that most of the emission seen in 1.3 mm images originates close to the black hole and peaks near the photon orbit. We also quantify the relative contribution of the disk, forward jet, and counterjet to 1.3 mm images.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS2012

Global Simulation of Proton Precipitation Due to Field Line Curvature During Substorms

The low latitude boundary of the proton aurora (known as the Isotropy Boundary or IB) marks an important boundary between empty and full downgoing loss cones. There is significant evidence that the IB maps to a region in the magnetosphere where the ion gyroradius becomes comparable to the local field line curvature. However, the location of the IB in the magnetosphere remains in question. In this paper, we show simulated proton precipitation derived from the Field Line Curvature (FLC) model of proton scattering and a global magnetohydrodynamic simulation during two substorms. The simulated proton precipitation drifts equatorward during the growth phase, intensifies at onset and reproduces the azimuthal splitting published in previous studies. In the simulation, the pre-onset IB maps to 7-8 RE for the substorms presented and the azimuthal splitting is caused by the development of the substorm current wedge. The simulation also demonstrates that the central plasma sheet temperature can significantly influence when and where the azimuthal splitting takes place.

Field Line Curvature↗

NASA NTRS2012

Global Simulation of Proton Precipitation Due to Field Line Curvature During Substorms

Gilson, M. L.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Simulations of Emerging Magnetic Flux. II. The Formation of Unstable Coronal Flux Ropes and the Initiation of Coronal Mass Ejections

We present results from three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the emergence of a twisted convection zone flux tube into a pre-existing coronal dipole field. As in previous simulations, following the partial emergence of the sub-surface flux into the corona, a combination of vortical motions and internal magnetic reconnection forms a coronal flux rope. Then, in the simulations presented here, external reconnection between the emerging field and the pre-existing dipole coronal field allows further expansion of the coronal flux rope into the corona. After sufficient expansion, internal reconnection occurs beneath the coronal flux rope axis, and the flux rope erupts up to the top boundary of the simulation domain (approximately 36 Mm above the surface).We find that the presence of a pre-existing field, orientated in a direction to facilitate reconnection with the emerging field, is vital to the fast rise of the coronal flux rope. The simulations shown in this paper are able to self-consistently create many of the surface and coronal signatures used by coronal mass ejection (CME) models. These signatures include surface shearing and rotational motions, quadrupolar geometry above the surface, central sheared arcades reconnecting with oppositely orientated overlying dipole fields, the formation of coronal flux ropes underlying potential coronal field, and internal reconnection which resembles the classical flare reconnection scenario. This suggests that proposed mechanisms for the initiation of a CME, such as "magnetic breakout," are operating during the emergence of new active regions.

corona↗

NASA NTRS1997

Gamma-Ray Bursts and Relativistic MHD around Coalescing Neutron Stars

In this proposal we performed the first relativistic hydrodynamic simulations of the binary neutron stars near coalescence. Calculations were performed in three spatial dimensions and were supplemented with magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the magnetic reconnection as the neutron star fluid responds to the relativistic forces of the binary. The ultimate goal of the proposed work was to develop a theoretical model for the temporal and spectral evolution of cosmological gamma-ray bursts produced during the magnetic reconnection. This is the first time such hydrodynamic calculations were performed and some surprising results were obtained. The neutrons stars were observed to compress and heat in the simulations. They could even collapse to black holes many orbits before coalescence. The question then arose as to whether this strange phenomenon could power a gamma-ray burst. The bulk of computing effort in this proposal was therefore devoted to an analysis of the implications of this possible new gamma-ray burst paradigm. The initial focus of the work performed under this proposal was therefore to utilize (3+1) dimensional and spherical numerical general relativistic hydrodynamics to study the origin, evolution, and parametric sensitivity of the collapse instability. We derived modified conditions of hydrostatic equilibrium for stars in the curved space of quasi-static orbits. We followed the magnetic field evolution for approximately one orbit (10 msec). The magnetic field energy was observed to exponentiate with an e-folding time of about 1 msec. Thus, the field should build up very quickly to a magnitude such that reconnection and back reaction of the fluid inhibits further growth.

Mathews, Grant J.↗

DOE OSTI2024

Energy-dependent and Energy-integrated Two-moment General-relativistic Neutrino Transport Simulations of a Hypermassive Neutron Star

Abstract We compare two-moment-based energy-dependent and three variants of energy-integrated neutrino transport general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamics simulations of a hypermassive neutron star. To study the impacts due to the choice of the neutrino transport schemes, we perform simulations with the same setups and input neutrino microphysics. We show that the main differences between energy-dependent and energy-integrated neutrino transport are found in the disk and ejecta properties, as well as in the neutrino signals. The properties of the disk surrounding the neutron star and the ejecta in energy-dependent transport are very different from the ones obtained using energy-integrated schemes. Specifically, in the energy-dependent case, the disk is more neutron-rich at early times and becomes geometrically thicker at later times. In addition, the ejecta is more massive and, on average, more neutron-rich in the energy-dependent simulations. Moreover, the average neutrino energies and luminosities are about 30% higher. Energy-dependent neutrino transport is necessary if one wants to better model the neutrino signals and matter outflows from neutron star merger remnants via numerical simulations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2023

Modelling CN Zeeman effect observations of the envelopes of a low-mass protostellar disc and a massive protostar

We use the POLARIS radiative transfer code to produce simulated circular polarization Zeeman emission maps of the cyanide (CN) J = 1–0 molecular line transition for two types of protostellar envelope magnetohydrodynamic simulations. Our first model is a low-mass disc envelope system (box length L = 200 au), and our second model is the envelope of a massive protostar (L = 104 au) with a protostellar wind and a CN-enhanced outflow shell. We compute the velocity-integrated Stokes I and V, as well as the implied V/I polarization percentage, for each detector pixel location in our simulated emission maps. Our results show that both types of protostellar environments are in principle accessible with current circular polarization instruments, with each containing swaths of envelope area that yield percentage polarizations that exceed the 1.8 percent nominal sensitivity limit for circular polarization experiments with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. In both systems, high-polarization (≳1.8 percent) pixels tend to lie at an intermediate distance away from the central star and where the line-centre opacity of the CN emission is moderately optically thin (τLC ~ 0.1–1). Furthermore, our computed V/I values scale roughly with the density-weighted mean line-of-sight magnetic field strength, indicating that Zeeman observations can effectively diagnose the strength of envelope-scale magnetic fields. We also find that pixels with large V/I are preferentially co-located where the absolute value of the velocity-integrated V is also large, suggesting that locations with favourable percentage polarization are also favourable in terms of raw signal.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS2007

General Relativistic Radiative Transfer and General Relativistic MHD Simulations of Accretion and Outflows of Black Holes

We have calculated the emission from relativistic flows in black hole systems using a fully general relativistic radiative transfer, with flow structures obtained by general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations. We consider thermal free-free emission and thermal synchrotron emission. Bright filament-like features are found protruding (visually) from the accretion disk surface, which are enhancements of synchrotron emission when the magnetic field is roughly aligned with the line-of-sight in the co-moving frame. The features move back and forth as the accretion flow evolves, but their visibility and morphology are robust. We propose that variations and location drifts of the features are responsible for certain X-ray quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) observed in black-hole X-ray binaries.

Fuerst, Steven V.↗

NASA NTRS1995

Physics of magnetospheric boundary layers

This final report was concerned with the ideas that: (1) magnetospheric boundary layers link disparate regions of the magnetosphere-solar wind system together; and (2) global behavior of the magnetosphere can be understood only by understanding its internal linking mechanisms and those with the solar wind. The research project involved simultaneous research on the global-, meso-, and micro-scale physics of the magnetosphere and its boundary layers, which included the bow shock, the magnetosheath, the plasma sheet boundary layer, and the ionosphere. Analytic, numerical, and simulation projects were performed on these subjects, as well as comparisons of theoretical results with observational data. Other related activity included in the research included: (1) prediction of geomagnetic activity; (2) global MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) simulations; (3) Alfven resonance heating; and (4) Critical Ionization Velocity (CIV) effect. In the appendixes are list of personnel involved, list of papers published; and reprints or photocopies of papers produced for this report.

Cairns, Iver H.↗

DOE OSTI2023

Effect of surface roughness on phase transition timing in megaampere pulsed-power–driven exploding conductors

An understanding of material phase transitions in megaampere pulsed-power–driven exploding conductors is important for predicting the growth of hydrodynamic instabilities in magneto-inertial fusion concepts. Here, this study analyzes phase transitions in electrical conductor explosions using 1D Lagrangian and 2D arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian resistive magnetohydrodynamic simulations to show that micrometer-scale surface roughness can lead to the electrothermal instability (ETI), a feedback effect that concentrates resistive heating and leads to early melting and ablation. Simulations of the Mykonos electrothermal instability II (METI-II) experiment show melting begins 19% sooner for machined rods with micrometer-scale surface roughness than for rods without these features. The surface magnetic field is 41 T around the initial region of melt, representing a lower magnitude than both the 86 T from 1D simulations and the 85 T threshold reported elsewhere. In 2D simulations with micrometer-scale surface roughness, temperature measurements indicate the critical point temperature of aluminum is reached 17% faster in comparison with 1D simulations. Values from 2D simulations with surface roughness align with predictions from ETI theory, and the observed temperature redistribution further supports the ETI as an underlying mechanism. Simulation results are validated against experimental photonic Doppler velocimetry data. This study shows 1D simulations are adequate to model conductors with sub-micrometer-scale surface roughness in this high-energy-density regime; however, 2D or 3D simulations are required to capture the full range of physics for accurately describing phase transitions in conductors with micrometer-scale or larger surface roughness.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2020

The Role of Outflows, Radiation Pressure, and Magnetic Fields in Massive Star Formation

Stellar feedback in the form of radiation pressure and magnetically driven collimated outflows may limit the maximum mass that a star can achieve and affect the star formation efficiency of massive prestellar cores. Here we present a series of 3D adaptive mesh refinement radiation–magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the collapse of initially turbulent, massive prestellar cores. Our simulations include radiative feedback from both the direct stellar and dust-reprocessed radiation fields, and collimated outflow feedback from the accreting stars. We find that protostellar outflows punch holes in the dusty circumstellar gas along the star’s polar directions, thereby increasing the size of optically thin regions through which radiation can escape. Precession of the outflows as the star’s spin axis changes due to the turbulent accretion flow further broadens the outflow, and causes more material to be entrained. Additionally, the presence of magnetic fields in the entrained material leads to broader entrained outflows that escape the core. We compare the injected and entrained outflow properties and find that the entrained outflow mass is a factor of ∼3 larger than the injected mass and the momentum and energy contained in the entrained material are ∼25% and ∼5% of the injected momentum and energy, respectively. As a result, we find that, when one includes both outflows and radiation pressure, the former are a much more effective and important feedback mechanism, even for massive stars with significant radiative outputs.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

DOE OSTI2024

Simulations of nozzle gas flow and gas-puff Z-pinch implosions on the Weizmann Z-pinch

We present simulations of an oxygen gas puff Z-pinch on a University scale generator at the Weizmann Institute of Science. The work accounts for the detailed geometry of the nozzle, the initial neutral gas density distribution, and the subsequent implosion. The modeling results show significant improvement with data for the current at the time of stagnation in comparison with a previous effort [Rosenzweig et al., Phys. Plasmas 27, 022705 (2020)]. As a first step, we performed simulations of the flow of neutral diatomic oxygen from a plenum through a nozzle within a recessed cathode, across a gap, and into the anode with a recessed grounded honeycomb. These simulations show an agreement with the measured initial gas density profiles within the region not blocked by the recesses and accessible to visible measurements. The computed neutral gas flow profile serves as the initial condition for a radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulation of the implosion using the MACH2-TCRE code. By considering the specific details of the nozzle and chamber geometry, we find agreement with the measured current profile, including the inductive notch. The simulations predict that the plasma undergoes a strong pinch within the hidden anode recess. The simulations also predict the strongest radiation pulse occurs within the anode recess and at the time of the observed inductive notch.

Physics↗

NASA NTRS2021

Spatially Separated Electron and Proton Beams in a Simulated Solar Coronal Jet

Magnetic reconnection is widely accepted to be a major contributor to non-thermal particle acceleration in the solar atmosphere. In this paper we investigate particle acceleration during the impulsive phase of a coronal jet, which involves bursty reconnection at a magnetic null point. A test-particle approach is employed, using electromagnetic fields from a magnetohydrodynamic simulation of such a jet. Protons and electrons are found to be accelerated non-thermally both downwards toward the domain’s lower boundary and the solar photosphere, and outwards along the axis of the coronal jet and into the heliosphere. A key finding is that a circular ribbon of particle deposition on the photosphere is predicted, with the protons and electrons concentrated in different parts of the ribbon. Furthermore, the outgoing protons and electrons form two spatially separated beams parallel to the axis of the jet, signatures that may be observable inin-situobservations of the heliosphere.

Ross Pallister↗

DOE OSTI2026

A New Window into the Baryon Cycle at Cosmic Noon with Line Intensity Mapping: Forecasts for auto- and cross-correlations in [CII]-158$μ$m, HI 21 cm, CO$_{J+1\rightarrow J}$, and H$α$ galaxies

Across the peak of cosmic star formation at $z\sim1-2$, inflow, processing, and feedback drive rapid changes in the spatial distribution and chemical composition of baryons in galaxies and surrounding reservoirs; this baryon cycle can be tomographically mapped by line intensity mapping (LIM) of atomic hydrogen, ionized carbon, and carbon monoxide. We present a simulation-based forecasting framework for detecting auto- and cross-power spectra between spectroscopic surveys of four such tracers at $z\sim0.5-1.7$ mapping the same deep field - TIM, EoRSpec/FYST, MeerKAT, & Euclid. We forward-model 3-D distributions for these tracers from magnetohydrodynamic simulations, directly capturing the two-halo, one-halo, and shot statistics without relying on analytical decompositions. We further detail a signal-to-noise formalism, tailored to LIM surveys with highly anisotropic geometries and Fourier-space coverage. We demonstrate that galaxy cross-correlations will be the dominant discovery channel for current-generation surveys. These instruments will detect the auto-spectra for CO and HI 21 cm and the CO $\times$ 21 cm cross-spectrum at modest S/N $\sim 1-10$, while placing upper limits on the [CII]-158$μ$m signals. [CII], CO, and HI LIM will be $\sim3-30\times$ ($0.5-1.5$ dex) more sensitive to cross-correlation with the Euclid survey, however, than their respective auto-correlations, constraining all three models of line emission at high significance (S/N $\sim 10-40$) within this decade. Finally, we formulate a staged instrumental trajectory with planned or reasonable improvements, including the as-proposed SKA-Mid. We forecast advancing the per-$k$-mode sensitivities of each auto-, galaxy-line, and line-line spectrum by several orders of magnitude, enabling new percent- and sub-percent level constraints on cosmology and the redshift evolution of star formation and the baryon cycle.

Agrawal, Shubh [Pennsylvania U., Dept. Math.]↗

NASA NTRS2011

CUDA Simulation of Homogeneous, Incompressible Turbulence

We discuss very fast Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA) simulations of ideal homogeneous incompressible turbulence based on Fourier models. These models have associated statistical theories that predict that Fourier coefficients of fluid velocity and magnetic fields (if present) are zero-mean random variables. Prior numerical simulations have shown that certain coefficients have a non-zero mean value that can be very large compared to the associated standard deviation. We review the theoretical basis of this "broken ergodicity" as applied to 2-D and 3-D fluid and magnetohydrodynamic simulations of homogeneous turbulence. Our new simulations examine the phenomenon of broken ergodicity through very long time and large grid size runs performed on a state-of-the-art CUDA platform. Results comparing various CUDA hardware configurations and grid sizes are discussed. NS and MHD results are compared.

Morin, Lee↗

DOE OSTI2025

Bridging Scales in Black Hole Accretion and Feedback: Relativistic Jet Linking the Horizon to the Host Galaxy

Simulating black hole (BH) accretion and feedback from the BH horizon to galactic scales is extremely challenging, as it involves a vast range of scales. Recently, our multizone method has successfully achieved global dynamical steady states of hot accretion flows in 3D general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations by tracking the bidirectional interaction between a nonspinning BH and its host galaxy. In this paper, we present technical improvements to the method and apply it to spin a * = 0.9 BHs, which power relativistic jets. We first test the new multizone setup with a smaller Bondi radius, R B ≈ 400 r g , where r g is the gravitational radius. The strongly magnetized accretion launches a relativistic jet with an intermediate feedback efficiency η ∼ 30%, in between that of a prograde (η ∼ 100%) and retrograde (η ∼ 10%) torus. Interestingly, both prograde and retrograde simulations also eventually converge to the same intermediate efficiency when evolved long enough, as accumulated magnetic fields remove gas rotation. We then extend strongly magnetized simulations to larger Bondi radii, R B ≈ 2 × 10 3 , 2 × 10 4 , 2 × 10 5 r g . We find that the BH accretion rate $\dot{M}$ is suppressed with respect to the Bondi rate as $\dot{M}_{\textrm{B}}$ as $\dot{M}/\dot{M}_{\textrm{B}} ∝ R_{\textrm{B}}^{-1/2}$. However, despite some variability, the time-averaged feedback efficiency remains at η ∼ 30%, independent of R B . This suggests that BH feedback efficiency in hot accretion flows is mainly governed by the BH spin (a * ) rather than by the galactic properties (R B ). From these first-principles simulations, we provide a feedback subgrid prescription for cosmological simulations: $\dot{E}_{\textrm{fb}} = 2$ x $10^{-3}[R_{\textrm{B}}/(2$ x $10^5 r_g)]^{-1/2}$ $\dot{M}_{\textrm{B}}c^2$ for BH spin a * = 0.9.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗