BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
PRODID:UW-Madison-Physics-Events
BEGIN:VEVENT
SEQUENCE:0
UID:UW-Physics-Event-6870
DTSTART:20220225T213000Z
DURATION:PT1H0M0S
DTSTAMP:20260414T154053Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20220224T190903Z
LOCATION:2241 Chamberlin Hall
SUMMARY:Magnetic Reconnection\, a Celestial Phenomenon in the Laborato
 ry\, Physics Department Colloquium\, Jan Egedal and the WiPPL team \, 
 UW Madison
DESCRIPTION:The Earth is embedded in the Sun's extended atmosphere\, w
 here the Earth's magnetic field acts as a shield against the incoming 
 solar wind plasma. However\, this shielding is not perfect. Through th
 e process of magnetic reconnection solar particles can penetrate the m
 agnetosphere and greatly influence the conditions in space that affect
  the Earth and its technological systems---magnetic reconnection contr
 ols space weather. Notable aspects of reconnection include its ability
  to convert magnetic energy into particle energy while changing the to
 pology of the magnetic field lines.  Although reconnection occurs in m
 icroscopic diffusion regions\, it often governs the macroscopic proper
 ties and behavior of the systems. It controls the evolution of explosi
 ve events such as solar flares\, coronal mass ejections and magnetic s
 torms in the Earth's magnetotail. The latter drives the auroral phenom
 ena.  <br>
\nThe phenomenon is explored on the Terrestrial Reconnectio
 n Experiment (TREX) at UW-Madison\, where the absolute rate of reconne
 ction is set by an external drive. A shock interface between the super
 sonically driven plasma inflow and a region of magnetic flux pileup pe
 rmits the normalized reconnection rate to self-regulate to a fixed val
 ue. In agreement with numerical and theoretical results\, the width of
  the electron diffusion regions is characterized by the kinetic length
  scale of the electrons. While the reconnection layers are modulated b
 y a current-driven instability\, their characteristics remain consiste
 nt with a 3D simulation for which off-diagonal stress in the electron 
 pressure tensor is responsible for fast reconnection.<br>
\n<br>
\n
URL:https://www.physics.wisc.edu/events/?id=6870
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR