Probability distribution functions of microscale magnetic fluctuations during quiet conditions

A statistical study of microscale magnetic fluctuations in the interplanetary and magnetosheath region during quiet conditions is approached from the concept of probability distribution function. Magnetic field data from Explorer 34 were used to reconstruct the distribution functions and to calculate some of their moments. The distribution functions are found to be nearly tri-Maxwellian as the background field is relatively quiet. The direction of maximum fluctuations is found to be nearly perpendicular to that of the background magnetic field, but the fluctuations are rarely circularly polarized. Across the Earth's bow shock, the degree of fluctuation anisotropy increases, but no noticeable change in relative fluctuation intensity has been observed.     

Forced vibration testing of buildings using the linear shaker seismic simulation (LSSS) testing method

This paper describes the development and numerical verification of a test method to realistically simulate the seismic structural response of full‐scale buildings. The result is a new field testing procedure referred to as the linear shaker seismic simulation (LSSS) testing method. This test method uses a linear shaker system in which a mass mounted on the structure is commanded a specified acceleration time history, which in turn induces inertial forces in the structure. The inertia force of the moving mass is transferred as dynamic force excitation to the structure. The key issues associated with the LSSS method are (1) determining for a given ground motion displacement, x_g, a linear shaker motion which induces a structural response that matches as closely as possible the response of the building if it had been excited at its base by x_g (i.e. the motion transformation problem) and (2) correcting the linear shaker motion from Step (1) to compensate for control–structure interaction effects associated with the fact that linear shaker systems cannot impart perfectly to the structure the specified forcing functions (i.e. the CSI problem). The motion transformation problem is solved using filters that modify x_g both in the frequency domain using building transfer functions and in the time domain using a least squares approximation. The CSI problem, which is most important near the modal frequencies of the structural system, is solved for the example of a linear shaker system that is part of the NEES@UCLA equipment site. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Two-dimensional guiding-center model of the solar wind-moon interaction

This paper presents a continued study of the two-dimensional guiding-center model of the solar wind interaction with the Moon. The characteristics theory and the computational method are discussed. The magnetic permeability of plasma is (1 + /2)^–1 in the solar wind flow upstream of the Moon, and it changes to 1 in the void region of the lunar wake. The gradual change of the magnetic permeability in the penumbral region from the interplanetary condition to the void condition is explained as the source of field perturbations in the lunar wake. Perturbations of the magnetic field propagate as magnetoacoustic waves in a frame of reference moving with the plasma flow. Computer solutions were obtained to show that (i) the two principal perturbations of the magnetic field in the lunar wake (the umbral increase and the penumbral decrease) are confined to a region bounded by a Mach cone tangent to the lunar body, and (ii) the penumbral increases occur outside the lunar Mach cone. Computer solutions are also used to identify the source of field perturbations and to simulate the solar wind-moon interaction under varying interplanetary conditions.     

Model magnetosphere of Mercury

The paper presents a three-dimensional quantitative model of Mercury's magnetosphere based on the entire combined set of observational data obtained from the first and third encounters of Mariner 10 with Mercury. The model assumes that the surface magnetic field of the planet Mercury consists of a dipole, a quadrupole and an octupole. The dipole moment of Mercury is 2.4 × 10²² G cm³, tilted 2.3° from the normal to the planetary orbital plane and having the same directional sense as that of the Earth. The intensity of the quadrupole moment is approximately 45% of the dipole, and that of the octupole moment 29% of the dipole. The model meets four critical tests: (1) it produces the smallest residuals among all existing models, (2) it can reproduce the crossing of a tail current sheet by Mariner 10, (3) all planetary field lines are confined inside the model magnetosphere, and (4) the size of the model magnetosphere agrees well with the magnetopause crossings directly observed from Mariner 10. The model can also be used to explain two observational features: (1) the plasma characteristics observed in different regions of the magnetosphere, and (2) the regions of quiet and disturbed signatures directly observed from Mariner 10.