A Flux-Corrected Transport Model of the Solar Wind Interaction with Comets
D.C. Boice (Southwest Research Institute), K. Murawski (Technical University of Lublin), W.F. Huebner (NASA Headquarters)
To investigate the solar wind interaction with comets, numerical
simulations are performed using a flux-corrected transport method to
solve the nonlinear, ideal magnetohydrodynamics equations in two
dimensions. Using parameters appropriate to comet P/Halley in the
inner solar system, the model reproduced the global plasma features
recorded by the spacecraft encounters. In particular, it was found
that a weak bow shock is formed upstream of the comet at the observed
distance. In addition, a contact surface and inner shock are reproduced
in the subsolar direction but at greater distances from the nucleus than
were observed. This suggests that the adopted ion-drag coefficient that
is commonly used in the literature may be too high. At the position of
the inner shock, just inside the contact surface, the ion mass density
is enhanced in the simulation in reasonable agreement with observations.