Simulating the interaction between a turbulent solar wind and bodies of the solar system

Etienne Behar

Using a newly developed multi-GPU hybrid-PIC solver and a 2-step simulation approach, we simulate the self-consistent interaction between a fully turbulent solar wind and bodies of the solar system. This first case of a medium activity comet illustrates the potential of this new type of simulation for going beyond the classical assumption of a laminar upstream wind. We show how upstream perpendicular magnetic fluctuations are processed by the comet’s atmosphere and how they result in structures in the comet’s tail otherwise absent in the case of a laminar flow.