Michael, that is a lie about Somov's section with the title "Reconnection in vacuum" which is followed by a section called "Reconnection in plasma".
The diagram comes straight from the reference you cited RC. Read it and weep. Like it or not, the key issue was *movement* of the *plasma particles*, AKA "current" streams. The *acceleration of plasma* is the point he makes, and you simply *ignored it*.
There are two currents (no quotes!)
that are not plasma filaments
Boloney. There are two moving streams of plasma, AKA *Birkeland currents* flowing through Somovs vacuum. The displacement of the streams of current are the *particle acceleration* component that *requires* plasma! Face it. Plasma is not "optional" in the process called "magnetic reconnection".
Magnetic reconnection - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Magnetic reconnection is a physical process
in highly conducting plasmas in which the magnetic
topology is rearranged
and magnetic energy is converted to kinetic energy, thermal energy, and particle acceleration.
Somov's example is A) inclusive of plasma (current), and B) inclusive of plasma particle acceleration. Clinger failed on both key points.
Read the large fonts RC. That's the part you utterly ignored, and Clinger utterly ignored. You two don't know squat about plasma physics because you've never lifted a finger to read a real textbook on the topic of MHD theory.
We will have to revisit the lack of reading comprehension you displayed about this textbook in the JREF forum, Michael dating from 7th November 2011 to 16th March 2012.
Gee, who would have guessed you would cite yourself some more and fail again to cite any author that ever claimed that electrical discharges are "impossible" in plasma?
Pathetic. When (if ever) are you going to read a real textbook on MHD theory RC?
ETA: I will point out something that you still have not grasped after almost 3 years, Michael: The actual magnetic reconnection does not happen at the currents.
I will point out something that you have not grasped after almost 3 years RC. You don't understand MHD theory or even the basics of MHD theory because you've never bothered to educate yourself. Nobody claimed it has to occur "at the currents". That's another of your strawman arguments. The problem is that *plasma particle acceleration* is not "optional".
If someone were obsessing about making the currents physical then we could have them as wires in glass tubes passing through a vacuum chamber containing no plasma.
BZZZT. The reason the currents can *move* is because they are composed of ordinary plasma. If it were a "solid", it would actually be nothing more than an example of *magnetic attraction". The conversion of magnetic field energy into *particle movement* isn't optional RC, no matter how much you try to deny it.
Magnetic reconnection would still happen around the neutral point (X in the diagram you have generously provided to debunk your own claim of plasma filaments
)
You can't "debunk" something you don't even begin to understand. Somov's example was *inclusive* of the highlighted quote from WIKI, whereas Clinger's example was *exclusive* of them. That's Clinger's error in a nutshell. You and the entire crew at JREF are utterly incompetent in the realm of MHD theory *by choice* in your case.