The Sun continually ejects matter into space, blowing a huge bubble of supersonic plasma. This solar wind bathes the whole solar system and shapes all planetary environments. The growth of space technology has considerably increased our knowledge of this medium. This 2007 book presents an introduction to the subject, starting with basic principles and including all the latest advances from space exploration and theory. It contains a short introduction to plasma physics and discusses the structure of the solar interior and atmosphere, the production of solar wind and its perturbations. It explains the objects of the Solar System, from dust to comets and planets, and their interaction with the solar wind. The final sections explore the astrophysical point of view. The topics are treated at various levels of difficulty both qualitatively and quantitatively. This book will appeal to graduate students and researchers in earth and atmospheric sciences, and astrophysics.

Little more than ten years have passed since spaceprobe-borne instruments con clusively demonstrated the existence of the solar wind. These observations con firmed the basic validity of a theoretical model, first proposed by E. N. Parker, predicting a continuous, rapid expansion of the solar corona. The subsequent decade has seen a tremendous growth in both the breadth and sophistication of solar wind observations; the properties of the interplanetary plasma near the orbit of the earth are now known in great detail. The theory of the coronal ex pansion has also been highly refilled both in the sense of including additional physical processes, and of treating more realistic (time-dependent and non spheri cally-symmetric) coronal boundary conditions. The present volume is an attempt to synthesize the solar wind observations and coronal expansion models from this decade of rapid development. The ultimate goal is, of course, the interpretation of observed solar wind phenomena as the effects of basic physical processes occurring in the coronal and interplanetary plasma and as the natural manifestations of solar properties and structures. This approach implies an emphasis upon the "large-scale" features revealed by the observations. It requires extensive use of the concepts and methods of fluid mechanics.

Humanity has long been fascinated by the planet Mars. Was its climate ever conducive to life? What is the atmosphere like today and why did it change so dramatically over time? Eleven spacecraft have successfully flown to Mars since the Viking mission of the 1970s and early 1980s. These orbiters, landers and rovers have generated vast amounts of data that now span a Martian decade (roughly eighteen years). This new volume brings together the many new ideas about the atmosphere and climate system that have emerged, including the complex interplay of the volatile and dust cycles, the atmosphere-surface interactions that connect them over time, and the diversity of the planet's environment and its complex history. Including tutorials and explanations of complicated ideas, students, researchers and non-specialists alike are able to use this resource to gain a thorough and up-to-date understanding of this most Earth-like of planetary neighbours.

This is the first book to give a comprehensive overview of recent observational and theoretical results on solar wind structures and fluctuations and magnetohydrodynamic waves and turbulence, preference being given to phenomena in the inner heliosphere. Emphasis is placed on the progress made in the past decade in the understanding of the nature and origin of especially small-scale, compressible and incompressible fluctuations. Turbulence models describing the spatial transport and spectral transfer of the fluctuations in the inner heliosphere are discussed. Intermittency of solar wind fluctuations and their statistical distributions are investigated. Studies of the heating and acceleration effects of the turbulence on the background wind are critically surveyed. Finally, open questions concerning the origin, nature and evolution of the fluctuations are listed, and perspectives for future research are outlined. The book is for graduate students and researchers in the field. Other target groups are scientists and professionals interested in space plasma physics and/or MHD turbulence.

Contributors examine the physics of wind origin and physical phenomena in winds, including heliospheric shocks, magnetohydrodynamic turbulence, and kinetic phenomena--and their interactions with surrounding media. Contributions range from studies of the interstellar cloud surrounding the solar system to solar wind interaction with comets.

The global demand for clean, renewable energy has rapidly expanded in recent years and will likely continue to escalate in the decades to come. Wind and solar energy systems often require large quantities of land and airspace, so their growing presence is generating a diverse array of new and challenging land use conflicts. Wind turbines can create noise, disrupt views or radar systems, and threaten bird populations. Solar energy projects can cause glare effects, impact pristine wilderness areas, and deplete water resources. Developers must successfully navigate through these and myriad other land use conflicts to complete any renewable energy project. Policymakers are increasingly confronted with disputes over these issues and are searching for rules to effectively govern them. Tailoring innovative policies to address the unique conflicts that arise in the context of renewable energy development is crucial to ensuring that the law facilitates rather than impedes the continued growth of this important industry. This book describes and analyses the property and land use policy questions that most commonly arise in renewable energy development. Although it focuses primarily on issues that have arisen within the United States, the book’s discussions of international policy differences and critiques of existing approaches make it a valuable resource for anyone exploring these issues in a professional setting anywhere in the world.