Three-Dimensional Simulations of Shock Propagation in the Heliosphere and Beyond.

Continuous input of solar data to time-dependent 3D models is necessary for the study of shock propagation in the solar wind. We have performed time-dependent 3D simulations using two different models, the full MHD based HHMS model and the kinematic HAF model, to study turbulence, particle acceleration and transport, cosmic ray modulation, and other physically significant phenomena. The continuous solar inputs to these models include solar data from source surface maps, Wang-Sheeley-Arge parameters, and information on solar events such as coronal mass ejections, flares, etc. Model output options include the time series at any location of specific solar wind and magnetic field parameters, entropy, momentum flux, shock propagation, longitude and latitude distributions of parameters, meridian slices at any orientation for any parameter throughout the 3D heliosphere, flux ropes, interplanetary coronal mass ejections, corotating interaction regions, merged interaction regions, etc. Through comparisons with in-situ spacecraft data we are continuing our benchmarking of these models throughout the heliosphere and beyond. Comparisons of the results of these models with our analyses of planar magnetic structures associated with the October/November 2003 solar events provide additional insights into particle transport processes, shock propagation, and the modulation of cosmic rays. These efforts contribute to our understanding some of the physical mechanisms responsible for particle acceleration and transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]