Cosmic Plasma Physics

This unusual book considers physical principles, starting from the most general ones, and simplifies assumptions, helping students answer two key questions: what approximation is the simplest, but still sufficient for the description of a phenomenon in cosmic plasmas, and how to build an adequate model.

Inhalt

Preface. Introduction. 1. Particles and Fields: Exact Self-Consistent Description. 2. A Statistical Description of Cosmic Plasma. 3. Propagation of Accelerated Particles in Cosmic Plasma. 4. The Motion of a Particle in Given Fields. 5. Wave-Particle Interactions in Cosmic Plasma. 6. Coulomb Collisions of Particles in Cosmic Plasma. 7. A Hydrodynamic Description of Cosmic Plasma. 8. Magnetohydrodynamics of Cosmic Plasma. 9. Cosmic Plasma Flows in a Strong Magnetic Field. 10. MHD Waves in Cosmic Plasma. 11. Discontinuous Flows in a MHD Medium. 12. Evolutionarity of MHD Discontinuities. 13. Particle Acceleration by Shock Waves. 14. Cosmic Plasma Equilibrium in Magnetic Field. 15. Stationary Flows in a Magnetic Field. 16. Magnetic Reconnection in Current Sheets. 17. Stationary Models of Reconnecting Current Sheets. 18. Particle Acceleration in Current Sheets. 19. Structural Instability of Reconnecting Current Sheets. 20. The Tearing Instability of a Reconnecting Current Sheet. 21. Selected Trends in Cosmic Plasma Physics. 22. Magnetic Reconnection of Electric Currents. Epilogue. Appendices. Bibliography. Index.