THEORETICAL PLASMA DISTRIBUTIONS CONSISTENT WITH ULYSSES MAGNETIC-FIELD OBSERVATIONS IN A SOLAR-WIND TANGENTIAL DISCONTINUITY

The overall multi-layer structure of the magnetic field profile observ ed by Ulysses across a broad solar wind tangential discontinuity can b e reproduced fairly well by means of a kinetic model. Such a simulatio n provides complementary information about the velocity distribution f unctions, which are not always available from the plasma experiment du e to the low time resolution inherent in plasma measurements. The succ ess of such a simulation proves that the kinetic model can be used as a realistic basis for further studies of the structure and stability o f solar wind tangential disontinuities.