The Sun continually ejects matter into space, blowing a huge bubble of supersonic plasma. This solar wind bathes the whole solar system and shapes all planetary environments. The growth of space technology has considerably increased our knowledge of this medium. This 2007 book presents an introduction to the subject, starting with basic principles and including all the latest advances from space exploration and theory. It contains a short introduction to plasma physics and discusses the structure of the solar interior and atmosphere, the production of solar wind and its perturbations. It...

The subject of wave-particle interactions occurring in space plasmas has developed strongly, both observationally and theoretically, since the discovery of the Van Allen radiation belts of charged particles trapped in the Earth s magnetosphere over forty years ago. These wave-particle interactions are recognized today as being a most important research topic in space plasma physics. This is the first book to provide a full and systematic description of the physical theory of whistler and Alfven cyclotron masers acting in planetary magnetospheres, and in the Sun s outer atmosphere. It...

This second edition brings this definitive book up to date with the many advances in our understanding of Arctic climate since the first edition was published in 2005. The book has also been extensively reorganized to weave issues of Arctic change throughout the text, rather than confining them to a single chapter. It is the first to provide an integrated assessment of the Arctic climate system, recognizing that a true understanding of how the Arctic functions lies in appreciating the interactions among its various components. The book begins with a historical perspective, followed by...

An Introduction to Space Plasma Complexity considers select examples of complexity phenomena related to observed plasma processes in the space environment, such as those pertaining to the solar corona, the interplanetary medium, and Earth's magnetosphere and ionosphere. This book provides a guided tour of the ideas behind forced and/or self-organized criticality, intermittency, multifractals, and the theory of the dynamic renormalization group, with applications to space plasma complexity. There is much to be explored and studied in this relatively new and developing field. Readers will be...

An engaging introduction to collisionless shocks in space plasmas, presenting a complete review, from first principles to current research.