We discuss the evolution of ionization instability, which gives rise to the formation of regular structures in plasma. The experiment was conducted in a disk magnetohydrodynamic channel in Xe. The evolution of luminous inhomogeneities, and changes in the luminosities of individual inhomogeneities, are traced. Electron concentrations and temperatures in fluctuations are measured. Average values of the electron concentration and temperature, plasma conductivity, and the Hall parameter are estimated. The average conductivity and Hall parameter are compared with the effective values. The influence of positive and negative fluctuations in plasma parameters on the enhancement of ionization oscillations and average current is analyzed. Based on experimental data, a mechanism is suggested that is responsible for the increase in the effective conductivity of ionizationally unstable inert gas plasma with increasing magnetic induction.

The task of controlled variation of parameters of supersonic flow past a semicylindrical aerodynamic body is considered. The action of gas-discharge plasma on the flow by means of discharge-induced increase in the degree of nonequilibrium in the oncoming gas has been experimentally studied. For the flow parameters used in the experiment, the numerical simulation has been conducted for the thermal action of plasma upon the shock layer of a homogeneously heated region with the gas temperature equal to the electron temperature determined in the experiment. Comparison of the experimental and calculated data leads to the conclusion that the new mechanism based on increase in the degree of gas nonequilibrium in the source of energy supply can be used for controlling supersonic flows past aerodynamic bodies.

This paper demonstrates the possibility of active magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) control of supersonic flows containing shock waves. The shock wave configurations that occur at the inlet to a supersonic diffuser and in front of a streamlined semicylindrical model are used for the purpose of investigation. The impact is carried out by organizing local gas discharge regions when applying a magnetic field transverse to gas discharge currents. It has been shown that by changing the local region of application, the intensity and the direction of the gas discharge currents, it is possible to change the intensity and direction of the ponderomotive force acting on the gas flow during MHD interaction. The ponderomotive force control allows for acting locally on the shape and position of shock waves, the speed and direction of the flow, and the increase or reduction of pressure near the surface of the streamlined body. The experiments were carried out on a gas dynamic setup based on a shock tube in a gas dynamic path, capable of creating supersonic flows in a wide range of Mach numbers at M = 4–7. There was a possibility of organizing the electric and pulsed magnetic fields with an intensity of up to 1.5 T. The given experimental Schlieren flow patterns and the analysis of the obtained data demonstrate the MHD effect on: the change in the angle of inclination of the attached shocks, both into increase and decrease; the bow shock wave approaching the body or the removal from it; and the change in the aerodynamic drag and lift force of the streamlined bodies.