EXCESS HEATING OF HE-4(2+) AND O6+ RELATIVE TO H+ DOWNSTREAM OF INTERPLANETARY SHOCKS

Citation
D. Berdichevsky et al., EXCESS HEATING OF HE-4(2+) AND O6+ RELATIVE TO H+ DOWNSTREAM OF INTERPLANETARY SHOCKS, J GEO R-S P, 102(A2), 1997, pp. 2623-2635
Citations number
33
Categorie Soggetti
Geosciences, Interdisciplinary","Astronomy & Astrophysics","Metereology & Atmospheric Sciences
Journal title
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SPACE PHYSICS
ISSN journal
21699380 → ACNP
Volume
102
Issue
A2
Year of publication
1997
Pages
2623 - 2635
Database
ISI
SICI code
2169-9380(1997)102:A2<2623:EHOHAO>2.0.ZU;2-3
Abstract
Using observations made by the solar wind ion composition spectrometer on sses during its trip in the ecliptic plane to Jupiter, we examined the temperature ratios T(He-4(2+)/T(H+) and T(O6(+))/T(H+) across 15 shocks, including forward and reverse shock pairs as well as isolated shocks. The mean value over the whole set of downstream data studied w as 7+/-3 for the T(He-4(2+))T/(H+). Appreciable differentiated heating downstream of a shock occurred for an upstream ratio T(He-4(2+))/T(H)<4.5. Downstream in the shock regions, characterized by a quasisteady plasma flux, values of T(He-4(2+)/T(H+) and T(O6(+))/T(H+) are observ ed in the range 4.6 to 10.8 and 19 to 48, respectively. Downstream of the shock, extra-heated ions heavier than H+ added a mean 13+/-6% to t he ions' plasma pressure. (This is in addition to the pressure calcula ted using the common assumption of a temperature scaling with the ion masses in heliospheric collisionless plasma.) The extra heating of He- 4(2+) relative to H+ was larger for a smaller plasma beta, agreeing wi th the prediction of the magnetohydrodynamic calculations by Zhao et a l. [1991], although they appeared to underestimate the amount of added heating by a factor of 1.25 to 2.