[Table of Contents]

Plasma and Fusion Research

Volume 9, 2405008 (2014)

Regular Articles

Numerical Simulation of Dipolar Magnetic Field Inflation due to Equatorial Ring-Current
Yoshihiro KAJIMURA, Ikkoh FUNAKI1), Iku SHINOHARA1), Hideyuki USUI2), Masaharu MATSUMOTO2) and Hiroshi YAMAKAWA3)
Akashi National College of Technology, Akashi, Hyogo 674-8501, Japan
1)
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5210, Japan
2)
Kobe University, Kobe, Hyogo 657-8501, Japan
3)
Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan
(Received 22 November 2012 / Accepted 7 December 2013 / Published 28 February 2014)

Abstract

Magneto Plasma Sail (MPS) is one of the next generation space propulsion systems which generates a propulsive force using the interaction between the solar wind plasma and an artificial inflated magnetosphere generated by a superconductive coil. In the MPS system, the magnetosphere as a sail must be inflated by the plasma injection from the spacecraft in order to obtain the thrust gain. In the present study, the magnetic inflation concept is numerically tested by so-called ion one-component plasma model. As a simulation result, the magnetic moment of the system is drastically increased up to 45 times that of the coil current at plasma-β = 20 and rLi/L (radius of gyro motion / characteristics length of the magnetic field) = 0.01, and this is the first successful magnetosphere inflation obtained by numerical simulation. Corresponding maximum thrust gain is also estimated to be about 45.

Keywords

magneto plasma sail, magnetic inflation, one component plasma model

DOI: 10.1585/pfr.9.2405008

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References

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This paper may be cited as follows:

Yoshihiro KAJIMURA, Ikkoh FUNAKI, Iku SHINOHARA, Hideyuki USUI, Masaharu MATSUMOTO and Hiroshi YAMAKAWA, Plasma Fusion Res. 9, 2405008 (2014).