* Astronomy

Using a computer model simulation, Haruichi Washimi, a physicist at UC Riverside, has predicted when the interplanetary spacecraft Voyager 2 will cross the termination shock, the spherical shell around the solar system that marks where the solar wind slows down to subsonic speed.
According to Washimis simulations, the spacecraft is set to cross the termination shock in late 2007-early 2008. To make this forecast, Washimi and his colleagues used data from Voyager 2 and performed a global magneto-hydrodynamic simulation a method that allows for precise and quantitative predictions of geomagnetic disturbances caused by solar activities.
Because Voyager 2s crossing of the shock is expected to be an abrupt and relatively brief event, scientists are working to ensure that the most is made of the opportunity. With an idea of when the spacecraft will cross the shock, they are better able to maximise coverage of the crossing.
Study results appear in the Dec. 1 issue of The Astrophysical Journal.

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