ON HYDROMAGNETIC STABILITY OF STATIONARY EQUILIBRIA

Bernstein et al., showed that the stability of a hydromagnetic fluid in static equilibrium could be determined by an energy principle formalism. Those methods are extended to the consideration of the stability of stationary equilibria. The considerations lack the powerful theorems available for systems governed by Hermitian operators, but it has been possible to obtain some general results for this case. Linearized equations of motion and the boundary conditions in a Lagrangian representation are discussed. Some properties of the equations and a general sufficient condition for stability are given. A general perturbation theory for small flow velocities is presented. A reformulation of the equations in hamiltonian form, and an application of the theory, calculated by Pytte, to a rotating stabilized pinch configuration are appended. (B.O.G.)