| Abstract * |
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I will review findings from both 2D and 3D numerical magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of coronal rain, which results from thermal instability driven by radiative losses. This ubiquitous condensation phenomenon has been studied in hydrodynamic fashion for decades, adopting prescribed field line topologies to reduce an MHD process to a pure one-dimensional hydro one. Nowadays, thanks to modern multi-dimensional MHD studies, one can finally appreciate the role of counter-streaming flows, the intricate shapes of rebound shocks when siphon flows impinge on newly formed blobs, and the way in which blobs may well meander through weaker magnetic field regions. The simulations demonstrate cyclic coronal rain patterns, enriched by sudden bursts of coronal rain 'showers', and their statistical properties agree very well with observational studies. The regions affected by intricate coronal rain dynamics can be confronted with analytic theory on linear MHD instabilities in gravitating, magnetized configurations. |
