Auroral effects seen in laboratory vortexes

An explanation of the aurora's undulating folds and rays may come from models of instabilities, some of which were developed to explain effects seen in the laboratory. The folds and rays appear to be vortexes of charge density that occur when the aurora charge sheet becomes unstable above a certain charge density. Work reported by Harold F. Webster (General Electric) and Thomas J. Hallinan (University of Alaska) has centered on the analysis of charge distribution in current sheets and charge sheets in the presence of a magnetic field and its possible usefulness as an auroral model.