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About ‘reconnection’ in a collisionless plasma

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Abstract

Two kinds of mechanisms have been advertised for magnetic field line reconnection in plasmas: a slow diffusive process, proposed by Parker and Sweet, related to the Tearing mode and field line stochasticity; an Alfénic flow, with a fast merging rate, the so-called Petschek theory. We consider both mechanisms successively and emphasize the yet unsolved theoretical difficulties.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Group of Theoretical Physics, Polytechnic School, 91120, Palaiseau, France

    R. Pellat

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  1. R. Pellat
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Proceedings of the Symposium on Solar Terrestrial Physics held in Innsbruck, May–June 1978.

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Pellat, R. About ‘reconnection’ in a collisionless plasma. Space Sci Rev 23, 359–364 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00172244

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00172244

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