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Dr. Philip A. Isenberg
Research Professor
Astrophysics/Solar-Terrestrial Physics

Research Interests: Theoretical space plasma physics; solar wind acceleration; solar wind interactions with neutral particles from comets and the interstellar medium; solar flares.

As a member of the Solar-Terrestrial Theory Group at UNH, I primarily study the acceleration of the plasma in the solar corona to form the solar wind, and the pickup into the free-flowing solar wind of newly-ionized particles from comets and from the interstellar medium. Both of these processes are currently thought to depend on a resonant cyclotron interaction between the ions and various types of hydromagnetic waves in the plasma. I am investigating the details of this interaction and constructing mathematical models (both analytical and numerical) of the resulting effects on the ion populations in the solar corona and solar wind. We expect these studies to guide us in finally understanding the decades-old problems of the energization of the solar wind and other heliospheric plasmas.

PUBLICATIONS

  1. Isenberg, P.A., Umbral boundaries, convection, and the depth of sunspots, Solar Phys., 50, 49, 1976.
  2. Isenberg, P.A., Adiabatic self-similar blast waves, their radial instabilities, and their application to supernova remnants, Astrophys. J., 217, 597, 1977.
  3. Isenberg, P.A., and J.R. Jokipii, Effects of particle drift on cosmic-ray transport. II. Analytical solution to the modulation problem with no latitudinal diffusion, Astrophys. J., 219, 740, 1978.
  4. Isenberg, P.A., and E.H. Levy, Polar enhancements of interplanetary La through solar wind asymmetries, Astrophys. J. (Letters), 219, L59, 1978.
  5. Isenberg, P.A., and J.R. Jokipii, Gradient and curvature drifts in magnetic fields with arbitrary spatial variation, Proc. 16th Internat. Cosmic Ray Conf. (Kyoto), 3, 41, 1979.
  6. Isenberg, P.A., and J.R. Jokipii, Gradient and curvature drifts in magnetic fields with arbitrary spatial variation, Astrophys. J., 234, 746, 1979
  7. Isenberg, P.A. and J.R. Jokipii, Comment on "The role of particle drifts in solar modulation" by Lee and Fisk, Astrophys. J., 248, 845, 1981.
  8. Hollweg, J.V. and P.A. Isenberg, On rotational forces in the solar wind, J. Geophys. Res., 86, No. 11, 463, 1981.
  9. Isenberg, P.A., H.C. Koons and J.F. Fennell, Simultaneous observations of energetic electrons and dawnside chorus in geosynchronous orbit, J. Geophys. Res., 87, 1495, 1982.
  10. Isenberg, P.A. and J.V. Hollweg, Finite amplitude Alfvén waves in a multi-ion plasma: Propagation, acceleration, and heating, J. Geophys. Res., 87, 5023, 1982.
  11. Isenberg, P.A. and J.V. Hollweg, On the preferential acceleration and heating of solar wind heavy ions, J. Geophys. Res., 88, 3923, 1983.
  12. Isenberg, P.A., Acceleration of heavy ions in the solar wind, Solar Wind Five, ed. by M. Neugebauer, NASA Conference Publ. 2280, 655, 1983.
  13. Isenberg, P.A., The ion-cyclotron dispersion relation in a proton-alpha solar wind, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 2133, 1984.
  14. Isenberg, P.A., Resonant acceleration and heating of solar wind ions: Anisotropy and dispersion, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 6613, 1984.
  15. Isenberg, P.A., P.-P. Chih and L.A. Fisk, The heating of the solar wind by the interstellar neutral gas, J. Geophys. Res., 90, 12040, 1985.
  16. Isenberg, P.A., On a difficulty with accelerating particles at slow-mode shocks, J. Geophys. Res., 91, 1699, 1986.
  17. Isenberg, P.A., Interaction of the solar wind with interstellar neutral hydrogen: Three-fluid model, J. Geophys. Res., 91, 9965, 1986.
  18. Isenberg, P.A., Evolution of interstellar pickup ions in the solar wind, J. Geophys. Res., 92, 1067, 1987.
  19. Isenberg, P.A., Energy diffusion of pickup ions upstream of comets, J. Geophys. Res., 92, 8795, 1987.
  20. Isenberg, P.A., Comment on "On the dispersion of ion cyclotron waves in H+ - He++ solar wind-like magnetized plasmas" by Cuperman, Ofman, and Dryer, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 10151, 1989.
  21. Burlaga, L.F., L.W. Klein, J.D. Scudder and P.A. Isenberg, Pressure balanced structures between 1 AU and 24 AU and their implications for solar wind electrons and interstellar ions, J. Geophys. Res., 95, 2229, 1990.
  22. Isenberg, P.A., Investigations of a turbulence-driven solar wind model, J. Geophys. Res., 95, 6437, 1990.
  23. Isenberg, P.A., Interstellar pickup protons at pressure-balanced structures,J. Geophys. Res., 96, 155, 1991.
  24. Isenberg, P.A., The solar wind, chapter in Geomagnetism, v. 4, ed. by J.A. Jacobs, p. 1-85, Academic Press, London, 1991.
  25. Forbes, T.G., and P.A. Isenberg, A catastrophe mechanism for coronal mass ejections, Astrophys. J., 373, 294, 1991.
  26. Isenberg, P.A., The continuing mystery of the interstellar pickup protons, Proc. Symp. Physics of Space Plasmas, ed. by T. Chang, G. B. Crew, and J. R. Jasperse, p. 3-14, Scientific, Cambridge, MA, 1991.
  27. Isenberg, P.A., On the interaction of isotropic pickup ions with oblique Alfvén waves, J. Geophys. Res., 98, 9433, 1993.
  28. Isenberg, P.A., T.G. Forbes and P. Démoulin, Catastrophic evolution of a force-free flux rope: A model for eruptive flares, Astrophys. J., 417, 368, 1993.
  29. Tan, L.C., P.A. Isenberg and G.M. Mason, Stochastic acceleration of water-group ions near comet Giacobini-Zinner, Proc. 23rd Internat. Cosmic Ray Conf., (Calgary), 3, 306, 1993.
  30. Forbes, T.G., E.R. Priest and P.A. Isenberg, On the maximum energy release in flux- rope models of eruptive flares, Solar Phys., 150, 245, 1994.
  31. Burlaga, L.F., N.F. Ness, J.W. Belcher, A. Szabo, P.A. Isenberg and M.A. Lee, Pickup protons and pressure balanced structures: Voyager 2 observations in MIRs near 35 AU, J. Geophys. Res., 99, 21,511, 1994.
  32. Isenberg, P.A., and W.C. Feldman, Electron-impact ionization of interstellar hydrogen and helium at interplanetary shocks, Geophys. Res. Lett., 22, 873, 1995.
  33. Isenberg, P.A., Interstellar pickup ions: Not just theory anymore, Rev. Geophys. Supp., U.S. Nat. Rep. to IUGG, 623, 1995.
  34. Isenberg, P.A., and M.A. Lee, Effects of time-dependent photoionization on interstellar pickup ions, J. Geophys. Res., 100, 17,053, 1995.
  35. Isenberg, P.A., and M.A. Lee, A dispersive analysis of bispherical pickup ion distributions, J. Geophys. Res., 101, 11,055, 1996.
  36. Möbius, E., D. Rucinski, P.A. Isenberg and M.A. Lee, Determination of interstellar pickup ion distributions in the solar wind with SOHO and Cluster, Ann. Geophys., 14, 492, 1996.
  37. Isenberg, P.A., Effects of spatial transport and ambient wave intensity on the generation of MHD waves by interstellar pickup protons, in Solar Wind Eight, ed. by D. Winterhalter, J.T. Gosling, S.R. Habbal, W.S. Kurth, and M. Neugebauer, p. 626, AIP, Woodbury, NY, 1996.
  38. Feldman, W.C., J.L. Phillips, J.T. Gosling and P.A. Isenberg, Electron impact ionization rates for interstellar H and He atoms near interplanetary shocks: Ulysses observations, in Solar Wind Eight, ed. by D. Winterhalter, J.T. Gosling, S.R. Habbal, W.S. Kurth, and M. Neugebauer, p. 622, AIP, Woodbury, NY, 1996.
  39. Isenberg, P.A., A hemispherical model of anisotropic interstellar pickup ions, J. Geophys. Res., 102, 4719, 1997.
  40. Isenberg, P.A., A weaker solar wind termination shock, Geophys. Res. Lett., 24, 623, 1997.
  41. Isenberg, P.A., Solar wind, in Encyclopedia of Planetary Sciences, ed. by J.H. Shirley and R.W. Fairbridge, p. 766, Chapman and Hall, New York, 1997.
  42. Möbius, E., D. Rucinski, M.A. Lee and P.A. Isenberg, Decreases in the antisunward flux of interstellar pickup He+ associated with radial interplanetary magnetic field, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 257, 1998.
  43. Isenberg, P.A., and M.A. Lee, Transport of anisotropic interstellar pickup ions on bent flux tubes, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 12037, 1998.
  44. Lin, J., T.G. Forbes, P.A. Isenberg, and P. Démoulin, The energetics of flux-rope prominence models in axially symmetric systems, in New Perspectives on Solar Prominences, ed. by D. Webb, D. Rust, and B. Schmieder, Astron. Soc. Pac. Conf. Series, ASP, Provo, Utah, p. 350, 1998.
  45. Lin, J., T.G. Forbes, P.A. Isenberg and P. Démoulin, The effect of curvature on flux- rope models of coronal mass ejections, Astrophys. J., 504, 1006, 1998.
  46. Isenberg, P.A., Interstellar pickup ions in the solar wind, in Solar Wind Nine, ed. by S.R. Habbal, R. Esser, J.V. Hollweg and P.A. Isenberg, AIP, Woodbury, NY, p. 189, 1999.
  47. Isenberg, P.A. and M.A. Lee, Solar wind speed dependence of pickup ion fluxes by cross-field diffusion, in Solar Wind Nine, ed. by S.R. Habbal, R. Esser, J.V. Hollweg and P.A. Isenberg, AIP, Woodbury, NY, p. 815, 1999.
  48. Isenberg, P.A., M.A. Lee, and J.V. Hollweg, A kinetic model of coronal heating and acceleration by ion-cyclotron waves: Preliminary results, Solar Phys., submitted, 1999.
  49. Szegö, K., K.-H. Glassmeier, R. Bingham, A. Bogdanov, A. Brinca, T. Cravens, E. Dubinin, C. Fischer, L. Fisk, T. Gombosi, G. Haerendel, P. Isenberg, M. Lee, C. Mazelle, E. Möbius, U. Motschmann, K. Sauer, N. Schwadron, V.D. Shapiro, B. Tsurutani, G. Zank, Physics of mass loaded plasmas, Space Sci. Rev., submitted, 1999.

Books Edited: Solar Wind Nine, edited by S. R. Habbal, R. Esser, J. V. Hollweg and P. A. Isenberg, AIP, Woodbury, NY, 1999.

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