New Twist on Birkeland Currents

[StefanR]

The repeated collisions in MACSJ0717 are caused by a 13-million-light-year-long stream of galaxies, gas, and dark matter - known as a filament -- pouring into a region already full of matter. A collision between gas in two or more clusters causes the hot gas to slow down. However, the galaxies, which are mainly empty space, do not slow down as much and so they move ahead of the gas. Therefore, the speed and direction of each cluster's motion -- perpendicular to the line of sight -- can be estimated by studying the offset between the average position of the galaxies and the peak in the hot gas.
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2009/macs/index.html

In MACSJ0717, a 13-million-light-year-long stream of galaxies, gas and dark matter – known as a filament - is pouring into a region already full of galaxies. Like a freeway of cars emptying into a full parking lot, this flow of galaxies has caused one collision after another.

"In addition to this enormous pileup, MACSJ0717 is also remarkable because of its temperature," said Cheng-Jiun Ma of the University of Hawaii and lead author of the study. "Since each of these collisions releases energy in the form of heat, MACS0717 has one of the highest temperatures ever seen in such a system."

While the filament leading into MACJ0717 had been previously discovered, these results show for the first time that it was the source of this galactic pummeling. The evidence is two-fold. First, by comparing the position of the gas and clusters of galaxies, the researchers tracked the direction of clusters’ motions, which matched the orientation of the filament in most cases. Secondly, the largest hot region in MACSJ0717 is where the filament intersects the cluster, suggesting ongoing impacts.

"MACSJ0717 shows how giant galaxy clusters interact with their environment on scales of many millions of light years," said team member Harald Ebeling, also from University of Hawaii. "This is a wonderful system for studying how clusters grow as material falls into them along filaments."

Computer simulations show that the most massive galaxy clusters should grow in regions where large-scale filaments of intergalactic gas, galaxies, and dark matter intersect, and material falls inward along the filaments.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/chand ... 9-031.html

[StefanR]

Most probably somewhere on the forum somewhere, but still:

Filamentary Structures in Planetary Nebulae
http://www.staff.alfvenlab.kth.se/hanna ... aments.pdf

I did see something with frozen in magnetic fields , but I'm probably reading it wrong.

ps. thank you UT for providing the link

[MGmirkin]

I noticed Peratt used the term "magnetic ropes" in one of his papers . Maybe we shouldn't be so hard on the mainstream....

When in Rome... It helps to speak the local dialect to converse with the natives. Doesn't mean one doesn't still know English.

[/End playing devil's advocate.]

Regards,
~Michael

[MGmirkin]

Most probably somewhere on the forum somewhere, but still:

Filamentary Structures in Planetary Nebulae
http://www.staff.alfvenlab.kth.se/hanna ... aments.pdf

I did see something with frozen in magnetic fields , but I'm probably reading it wrong.

Elephant trunks, huh? I'm trying to remember who I'd read about having already covered this? Carlqvist, I think?

Anyway, this PDF seems to follow the same line of reasoning...

Axial current causing twisted structure --> Y-shape.

Sounds very similar to Birkeland currents and filamentation from parallel currents intertwining.

Twisted magnetic fields --> induced electric current

So, it seems like maybe the notion of currents playing a role in cosmic-scale functions isn't quite so far-fetched as some astronomers like to claim?

"Magnetic slinky" indeed.

~Michael Gmirkin

[MGmirkin]

Ahh, I see Dahlgren has previously worked with Carlqvist... That makes more sense, I suppose.

(Filamentary structures in planetary nebulae)
http://www.springerlink.com/content/848216831k7p4887

Regards,
~Michael Gmirkin

[StefanR]

Ahh, I see Dahlgren has previously worked with Carlqvist... That makes more sense, I suppose.

Ok, I was not aware of that, you mean this Carlqvist?

Theory of twisted trunks

Abstract
Using the 2.6 m Nordic Optical Telescope we have observed a large number of elephant trunks in several H II regions. Here, we present a small selection of this material consisting of a few large, well-developed trunks, and some smaller ones. We find that: (i) the well-developed trunks are made up of dark filaments and knots which show evidence of twisted structures, (ii) the trunks are connected with essentially two filamentary legs running in V-shape, and (iii) all trunks have the maximum extinction in their heads. We advance a theory of twisted elephant trunks which is based on the presence of magnetic flux ropes in molecular clouds where hot OB stars are formed. If the rope contains a local condensation it may adopt a V-shape as the H II region around the hot stars expands. If, in addition, the magnetic field in the rope is sufficiently twisted, the rope may form a double helix at the apex of the V. The double helix is identified with the twisted elephant trunks. In order to illustrate the mechanisms behind the double helix we have constructed a mechanical analogy model of the magnetic flux rope in which the rope has been replaced by a bundle of elastic strings loaded by a weight. Experiments with the model clearly show that part of the bundle will transform into a double helix when the twist of the bundle is sufficiently large. We have also worked out a simple theoretical model of a mass-loaded magnetic flux rope. Numerical calculations show that a double helix will indeed form when the twist of the rope exceeds a certain critical limit. Numerical model calculations are applied to both the analogy model experiments and one of the well-developed elephant trunks. On the basis of our model we also suggest a new interpretation of the so called EGGs.

The double helix mechanism is quite general, and should be active also in other suitable environments. One such environment may be the shell of supernova remnants. Another example is the expanding bubble outlined by the North Celestial Pole Loop.

Full paper link

[MGmirkin]

Ok, I was not aware of that, you mean this Carlqvist?

Yep, looks like it. Credited as Per Carlqvist / P. Carlqvist on the respective papers.

~Michael Gmirkin

[Anaconda]

Guys,

Wow!

All I got to say is, "well done."

I only wish "modern" astronomers would read and consider this chain of evidence and logical reasoning, the pictures and the links -- maybe this " " would turn on in their heads!

[mharratsc]

Well, the good news is- they've given enough smart equipment to these monkeys so that they are making incontrovertible observations, that are flying in the face of their mathematical conjecture... AND they are lining up quite well with EU theory.

The mediocre news is- they're still trying to filter these observations through the filter of their pre-conceived theory, rather than letting it completely disprove it... and looking around for a better explanation.

The bad news is- they'll never get through 1. and 2. fast enough to make any EU proponent happy!

[StefanR]

Herschel has peered inside an unseen stellar nursery and revealed surprising amounts of activity. Some 700 newly-forming stars are estimated to be crowded into filaments of dust stretching through the image. The image is the first new release of ‘OSHI’, ESA’s Online Showcase of Herschel Images.
Embedded within the dusty filaments in the Aquila image are 700 condensations of dust and gas that will eventually become stars. Astronomers estimate that about 100 are protostars, celestial objects in the final stages of formation. Each one just needs to ignite nuclear fusion in its core to become a true star. The other 600 objects are insufficiently developed to be considered protostars, but these too will eventually become another generation of stars.
This cloud is part of Gould’s Belt, a giant ring of stars that circles the night sky – the Solar System just happens to lie near the centre of the belt.

http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEMT0T9K73G_index_0.html

[seasmith]

Voyager Makes an Interstellar Discovery
12.23.2009

"Using data from Voyager, we have discovered a strong magnetic field just outside the solar system," explains lead author Merav Opher, a NASA Heliophysics Guest Investigator from George Mason University. "This magnetic field holds the interstellar cloud together and solves the long-standing puzzle of how it can exist at all."

"Voyager data show that the Fluff is much more strongly magnetized than anyone had previously suspected—between 4 and 5 microgauss*," says Opher.

The fact that the Fluff is strongly magnetized means that other clouds in the galactic neighborhood could be, too.

& Dragged kicking and whining into the Electric Yuga...

~s~

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2009 ... ist1066595

[mharratsc]

I am honestly amused by the notion of someday reading an article by some astronomer or 'heliometaphysicist' for lack of better comedy, which will attempt to explain how gravity is holding all of this magnetized interstellar material together... and they'll be able to show their math, to boot!


Mike H.

[Pianoman]

Biggest story of the year for me with regards to EU discoveries. The farther away we probe the greater NASA begin to see that electric currents are everywhere, counter to what they thought they would observe.

Lets hope that at least some sane people within NASA have the balls to bring plasma cosmology back into the thinking.

[jjohnson]

JungleLord said:

"Because the electrical current-carrying filaments are parallel, they attract via the Biot-Savart force law, in pairs but sometimes three.

This may be a direct quote from Birkeland and his observations; I'm not sure. However, Peratt's experiments led him to describe pairing of filaments under Biot-Savart forces as follows, in Physics of the Plasma Universe:

3.10.6 "Doubleness" in Current -Conducting Plasmas

The r-1 dependency of the Biot-Savart force law between current conducting filaments leads to a curious

phenomena [sic]: a pairing of filaments (c.f. Section 2.6). This pairing leads directly to a "twoness" or "doubleness" when many filaments are present in plasmas in which the magnetic field plays a major role.

As an example, in Figure 3.10.1 shows the evolution of three plasma filaments having parameters identical to those of Section 3.10.1 but spaced 3 (scale units) and 6 (scale units) apart. The two closest interact strongly to form a spiral while the third filament remains relatively quiescent. Examples of pairing in the filaments formed in the dense plasma focus (Section 4.6.2) is given by Bernard et al. (1975) and Bostick (1986).

So, by itself a single current carrying filament or sheet does not tend to form a pinch, but two will twist together under B-S forces and do so. If there are more than two plasma filaments, which is possible, two will twist and pinch if the conditions warrant it, but the others do not engage in the fun with them. This was one man's experience, and includes references to even earlier researchers: note the dates when this stuff was written. Well after Birkeland's work, but certainly in time for today's scientists to have picked up the ball and run with it, had they chosen to do so. But messy math makes bad ju-ju in The Elegant Gravity-Driven Universe, so Option A, Explore elsewhere, was selected.