Wednesday, September 03, 2025 - 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Morse Hall, rm 301 -OR- Teams online
Speaker:
Dr. Michael Terres, Astrophysicist
Center for Astrophysics – Harvard & Smithsonian
Full title:
Reconstructing Ion VDFs for Insights into Solar Wind Turbulence and Wave–Particle Interactions
Abstract:
The key to addressing fundamental questions related to heating, acceleration, and turbulence in the solar wind lies in accurately representing the particle phase space velocity distribution functions (VDFs). The structure of solar wind VDFs provides insights into the history and evolution of plasma parcels from the low corona to the heliopause and beyond. However, observations of VDFs are often incomplete due to instrument limitations or because measurements are taken in reduced phase space dimensions.
In this presentation, I will discuss ongoing work focused on providing the best possible representation of ion distribution functions using our novel Slepian Basis Reconstruction technique. I will explore the application of this method for two specific scenarios: (1) agyrotropic full-field-of-view measurements and (2) gyrotropic partially obstructed electrostatic analyzer measurements.
Check out the rest of this season's Space Science Seminar Series, as well as previous recordings.
