Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2014/iii/paper-54/1/b/solution

Use axisymmetry and . Since the purely azimuthal velocity has zero divergence, the ideal magnetohydrodynamic induction equation becomes . Differentiation of the cylindrical unit vectors contributes to its azimuthal component, giving
The azimuthal component of the magnetic tension force is
There is no azimuthal pressure or gravitational force and no azimuthal advective acceleration for this motion. Because the poloidal magnetic field is divergence-free,
These coupled induction and tension equations describe a torsional Alfvén wave.

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