A TEST SUITE FOR MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC SIMULATIONS

We have drawn together in this paper a collection of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) problems that will provide researchers who have interests in modeling MHD phenomena with a battery of tests (a "test suite") for calibrating their numerical algorithms. Use of these tests will provide a common reference for comparison of different numerical MHD algorithms. The test suite includes both one- and two-dimensional problems. Taken together, these problems test the abilities of a numerical method to propagate accurately all of the MHD wave families in moving and stationary media, to capture MHD shocks and contact discontinuities, and to model accurately Lorentz force terms in multiple dimensions. An example solution of each test problem is presented. We demonstrate diagnostic convergence-testing procedures that provide a quantitative evaluation of MHD algorithms.