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At least 19 records

Magnetosphere-Ionosphere Coupling and Associated Ring Current Energization Processes

Adiabatic processes in the ring current are examined. In particular, an analysis of the factors that parameterize the net adiabatic energy gain in the inner magnetosphere during magnetic storms is presented. A single storm was considered, that of April 17, 2002. Three simulations were conducted with similar boundary conditions but with different electric field descriptions. It is concluded that the best parameter for quantifying the net adiabatic energy gain in the inner magnetosphere during storms is the instantaneous value of the product of the maximum westward electric field at the outer simulation boundary with the nightside plasma sheet density. However, all of the instantaneous magnetospheric quantities considered in this study produced large correlation coefficients. Therefore, they all could be considered useful predictors of the net adiabatic energy gain of the ring current. Long integration times over the parameters lessen the significance of the correlation. Finally, some significant differences exist in the correlation coefficients depending on the electric field description.

Liemohn, M. W.

Transport of charged particles in the earth's magnetosphere

A review of recent data on and conceptions of processes in which high energy particles are transported across magnetic shells in the earth's magnetosphere is presented. The processes discussed include adiabatic processes (with conservation of all three adiabatic invariants of charged particle motion in the magnetic field), diffusion processes (with violation of only the third or third and second invariants), and the so-called fast nonadiabatic processes, which appear to result from the action of strong electric fields.

Shalimov, V. P.

Comparison of radiative-convective models with constant and pressure-dependent lapse rates

One of the most commonly used models for studying climatic processes is the convective adjustment radiation model. In current radiation models, stable temperature profiles are maintained with a convective adjustment in which the temperature lapse rate is set equal to a critical lapse rate whenever the computed lapse rates exceed the critical value. First introduced by Manabe and Strickler (1964), a variety of convective adjustment models are now in use. It is pointed out that on a global scale, moist adiabatic processes, and thus moist adiabatic lapse rates, approximate the atmospheric temperature profile. Comparisons of profiles from a one-dimensional-radiative-convective model have been made using the conventional 6.5 K/km as the critical lapse rate and the pressure-dependent moist adiabatic lapse rates. For a clear sky and a single effective cloud the surface temperatures are 1 to 3 K higher with the constant 6.5 K/km critical lapse rate.

Hummel, J. R.

Critical speeding up in pure fluids

The extreme compressibility of a pure fluid near its critical point significantly affects its bulk dynamic response to temperature changes through adiabatic processes. Equations that describe the dynamics in the absence of gravity are developed, and the magnitude of the effect is illustrated with numerical solutions in one dimension. The results are remarkable: 5 mm of critical xenon, quenched from 20 to 10 mK above its critical temperature, cools by over 99 percent in less than 5 s. Moreover, adiabatic cooling is faster when the fluid is closer to the critical point.

Boukari, Hacene

An artificial energy method for calculating flows with shocks

The artificial-viscosity method, first proposed by von Neumann and Richtmyer, introduces an artificial viscous pressure term in regions of compression such that an increase in entropy occurs in shock transition zones. The paper describes how dissipative flows can be induced by reducing the total energy available for adiabatic processes in shock zones. A class of inviscid fluid flows, called semiflows, is described in which the flows exhibit thermodynamic differences. Induced dissipative flows modify the pressure in regions of compression in a manner analogous to the artificial-viscosity method and for a gas, the effect is equivalent to suitably modifying the gas constant in the equation of state. By employing MacCormack's method and the usual non-adiabatic equations, numerical solutions of a Riemann problem are compared with the modified artificial energy method, showing that the dissipation effect predicted by the analytical formulation is reflected in the numerical method as well.

Rose, M. E.

Temperature variation of the plasma sheet during substorms

The temperature and density of the plasma in the earth's distant plasma sheet at downstream distances of about 20-25 earth radii, are examined during a high geomagnetic disturbance period. It is shown that the plasma sheet cools when magnetospheric substorm expansion is indicated by the AE index. During cooling, the plasma sheet temperature, T, and the number density, N, are related by T proportional to N to the 2/3 power (adiabatic process) in some instances, while by T proportional to 1/N (isobaric process) in other cases. The total plasma and magnetic pressure decreases when T is proportional to 1/N and increases when T is proportional to 1/N. Observation also indicates that the dawn-dusk component of plasma flow is frequently large and comparable to the sunward-tailward flow component near the central plasma sheet during substorms.

Lui, A. T. Y.

Non-quasi-geostrophic effects in baroclinic waves with latent heat release

A study is conducted for the non-quasi-geostrophic baroclinic wave effects in a saturated atmosphere whose vertical motion is subject to pseudo-adiabatic processes. With respect to the characteristics of energetics for the first-order solution, it is noted that, in the cases of both the dry mode and the first moist mode, the heat transport quantities due to the second-order eddy are small and opposite in sign to their respective transports. The non-quasi-geostrophic effects render the vertical motion field asymmetric in each of the regions involved and enter into the present treatment only as nonlinear terms. The moisture transport terms in the eddy-available potential energy equation is small by comparison to other individual terms in the cyclone scale motion's energetics calculation. This is consistent with the observational results of Smith (1980).

Fichtl, G. H.

Connection between mesopause temperature, circulation and noctilucent clouds

To investigate the connection between mesopause temperature in summer and the induced circulation upon possible formation of the observed polar mesospheric (noctilucent) cloud layer (PMC), a two-dimensional semiempirical model is used to calculate the zonally averaged diabatic circulation. On the basis of the calculations, one may draw the following conclusions: (1) if the large departures from radiative equilibrium which occur at the summer mesopause at high latitudes should be balanced by adiabatic processes of the mean circulation alone, a vigorous circulation is needed (there is some evidence that such a vigorous circulation has been observed); (2) the vertical velocities of some cm/s at the polar summertime mesopause will support the formation of polar mesospheric clouds, because those large wind speeds support larger ice particles against gravitational sedimentation; and (3) a region of mild subsidence in the summertime midlatitude mesosphere due to the effect of nonlinear temperature advection would tend to limit the occurrence of ice particles to latitudes poleward of about 55 deg.

Gartner, V.

Observational and theoretical studies of the evolving structure of baroclinic waves: Attractor dynamics of global weather systems

Significant progress was made in developing a six-component dry model of mid-latitude baroclinic wave evolution, and a ten-component moist model. These models include representations of airflow over mountians and non-adiabatic processes. As a first step, the properties of a reduced, three component, baroclinic system are studied. The classical baroclinic stability criteria emerge as the properties of one of the three equilibria admitted, with the remaining two equilibria forming the attractor region for the observed weather activity. Passive tracer evolution in a baroclinic wave was studied. A model in which only constituents trapped within low atmospheric levels are considered, has been extended to include the possibility for fluxes into the upper levels of the atmosphere. The reported results for the lower levels achieved previously are shown to be qualitatively similar to those obtained by these new calculations in which the vertical flux constraint is removed. An extensive study of an 8-year record of global outgoing longwave radiation for the Northern Hemisphere reveals that blocking events exhibit only a weak signature of blocking highs, as measured by relatively low values of the ratio of the standard deviation to the mean value of the observed long wave outgoing radiation. Though present in many cases, the signature is not a strongly distinctive feature of the blocking episodes.

Saltzman, B.

Cloud-generated radiative heating and its generation of available potential energy

The generation of zonal available potential energy (APE) by cloud radiative heating is discussed. The APE concept was mathematically formulated by Lorenz (1955) as a measure of the maximum amount of total potential energy that is available for conversion by adiabatic processes to kinetic energy. The rate of change of APE is the rate of the generation of APE minus the rate of conversion between potential and kinetic energy. By radiative transfer calculations, a mean cloud-generated radiative heating for a well defined set of cloud classes is derived as a function of cloud optical thickness. The formulation is suitable for using a general cloud parameter data set and has the advantage of taking into account nonlinearities between the microphysical and macrophysical cloud properties and the related radiation field.

Stuhlmann, R.

The Design of Airplane-engine Superchargers

With the forms of superchargers and underlying principles of computation, delivery heads per stage of 7,000 to 8,500 meters (air column) at an effective efficiency, based on the adiabatic process, of 0.7 may be attained, the space and weight requirements being kept within reasonable limits.

Von Der Null, Werner

Turbulent Friction in the Boundary Layer of a Flat Plate in a Two-Dimensional Compressible Flow at High Speeds

In the present report an investigation is made on a flat plate in a two-dimensional compressible flow of the effect of compressibility and heating on the turbulent frictional drag coefficient in the boundary layer of an airfoil or wing radiator. The analysis is based on the Prandtl-Karman theory of the turbulent boundary later and the Stodola-Crocco, theorem on the linear relation between the total energy of the flow and its velocity. Formulas are obtained for the velocity distribution and the frictional drag law in a turbulent boundary later with the compressibility effect and heat transfer taken into account. It is found that with increase of compressibility and temperature at full retardation of the flow (the temperature when the velocity of the flow at a given point is reduced to zero in case of an adiabatic process in the gas) at a constant R (sub x), the frictional drag coefficient C (sub f) decreased, both of these factors acting in the same sense.

Frankl, F.

The Curious Events Leading to the Theory of Shock Waves

We review the history of the development of the modern theory of shock waves. Several attempts at an early-theory quickly collapsed for lack of foundations in mathematics and thermodynamics. It is not until the works of Rankine and later Hugoniot that a full theory is established. Rankine is the first to show that within the shock a non-adiabatic process must occur. Hugoniot showed that in the absence of viscosity and heat conduction conservation of energy implies conservation of entropy in smooth regions and a jump in entropy across a shock. Even after the theory is fully developed, old notions continue to pervade the literature well into the early part of the 20th Century.

Salas, Manuel D.

Adiabatic and nonadiabatic processes in thermal models of solar hard X-ray bursts

The temporal evolution of thermal-bremsstrahlung-emitting material at the top of a solar coronal loop under various processes is examined as a model of solar hard X-ray bursts. The behavior of emission measure and temperature with time is analyzed for the hot plasma confined in a segment at the top of a loop, taking into account the effects or the time variation of the confining toroidal magnetic field, the longitudinal expansion of the source through the motion of a pair of collisionless conduction fronts and unspecified heating or cooling processes. Analytic expressions for the behavior of the toroidal magnetic field and the heating rate necessary to reproduce a given behavior of emission measure and temperature with time are obtained in terms of the initial magnetic field strength and density of the heated region and a characteristic longitudinal expansion time. Results are applied to observations of two impulsive solar hard X-ray bursts, and it is shown that the contribution of heating is negligible after the first few seconds of the events, although significant nonadiabatic heating occurs early in the events.

Emslie, A. G.

The mesoscale forcing of a midlatitude upper-tropospheric jet streak by a simulated convective system. 1: Mass circulation and ageostrophic processes

The mutual forcing of a midlatitude upper-tropospheric jet streak by organized mesoscale adiabatic and diabatic processes within a simulated convective system (SCS) is investigated. Using isentropic diagnostics, results from a three-dimensional numerical simulation of an SCS are examined to study the isallobaric flow field, modes of dominant ageostrophic motion, and stability changes in relation to the mutual interdependence of adiabatic processes and latent heat release. Isentropic analysis affords an explicit isolation of a component of isallobaric flow associated with diabatic processes within the SCS. Prior to convective development within the simulations, atmospheric destabilization occurs through adiabatic ageostrophic mass adjustment and low-level convergence in association with the preexisting synoptic-scale upper-tropospheric jet streak. The SCS develops in a baroclinic zone and quickly initiates a vigorous mass circulation. By the mature stage, a pronounced vertical couplet of low-level convergence and upper-level mass divergence is established, linked by intense midtropospoheric diabatic heating. Significant divergence persists aloft for several hours subsequent to SCS decay. The dominant role of ageostrophic motion within which the low-level mass convergence develops is the adiabatic isallobaric component, while the mass divergence aloft develops principally through the diabatic isallobaric component. Both compnents are intrinsically linked to the convectively forced vertical mass transport. The inertial diabatic ageostrophic component is largest near the level of maximum heating and is responsible for the development of inertial instability to the north of SCS, resulting in this quadrant being preferred for outflow. The inertial advective component, the dominant term that produces the new downstream wind maximum, rapidly develops north of the SCS and through mutual adjustment creates the baroclinic support for the new jet streak.

Wolf, Bart J.

Low energy antiprotons from supernova exploding in dense clouds

The antiproton spectrum resulting from a supernova, which exploded inside a dense cloud, is calculated by taking into account all energy loss processes including adiabatic deceleration during the expansion phase. The influence of various energy loss processes on the evolution of the spectrum as the supernova expands is investigated. It is shown that if about 25 percent of the cosmic ray nucleons are from such sources, the observed low energy antiprotons can be explained, provided the effect of solar modulation is not very large. The possibility of obtaining enhanced low energy spectrum by this process is also examined.

Stephens, S. A.