Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) is a research area concerned with the macroscopic behavior of electrically conducting fluids—such as plasmas, liquid metals, and salty water—under the influence of magnetic and electric fields. It couples the Navier–Stokes equations of fluid dynamics with Maxwell’s equations of electromagnetism, often under simplifying assumptions like quasi-neutrality and low-frequency fields. MHD investigates phenomena such as magnetic reconnection, plasma instabilities, dynamo action, and turbulence, and underpins theoretical and computational studies in astrophysics, space and solar physics, fusion research, and engineering applications involving flow control and electromagnetic propulsion in conducting fluids.
A study published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, introduces a newly defined "filament channel" function. This new function provides a novel theoretical foundation for predicting solar eruptions by determining whether ...
Astronomy
Jan 7, 2025
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25
Future fusion power plants will require good plasma confinement to sustain reactions and generate energy. One way to contain plasma for fusion reactions is to use a tokamak, a device that applies magnetic fields to "bottle" ...
Plasma Physics
Oct 15, 2024
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59
Researchers at KU Leuven, the University of Colorado, Boulder, the Flatiron Institute, and the University of Wisconsin–Madison recently set out to answer a long-standing research question, specifically whether charged particles ...
In the nine decades since humans first produced fusion reactions, only a few fusion technologies have demonstrated the ability to make a thermal fusion plasma with electron temperatures hotter than 10 million degrees Celsius, ...
Plasma Physics
Apr 23, 2024
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535
In the blink of an eye, the unruly, superheated plasma that drives a fusion reaction can lose its stability and escape the strong magnetic fields confining it within the donut-shaped fusion reactor. These getaways frequently ...
Plasma Physics
Feb 21, 2024
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