Non-Equilibrium Reconstruction of the Solar–Interstellar Boundary: A High-Resolution Computational Study of Heliopause Dynamics

This study presents a high-resolution computational reconstruction of heliopause dynamics spanning the period 1950–2026, treating the solar–interstellar boundary as a fully non-equilibrium plasma interface. Unlike traditional steady-state or equilibrium models, the reconstruction resolves collisionless plasma behaviour, charge-exchange coupling, turbulence, magnetic energy redistribution, and time-dependent solar forcing without imposing predefined boundary geometry or thermodynamic closure. The results reveal a heliopause characterized by long-term global stability coexisting with intense internal dynamism. Persistent structural nodes, localized heating events, and instability hotspots emerge naturally, accompanied by a clear decoupling between plasma temperature and total energy density. These features provide a unified physical explanation for long-standing observational anomalies reported by deep-space probes, including abrupt boundary crossings, inconsistent temperature measurements, and sustained turbulence beyond the nominal heliopause. The findings support a conceptual shift in which the heliopause is understood as a self-organizing, dynamically regulated interface rather than a static surface. More broadly, the work suggests that structured non-equilibrium boundary behaviour may be a generic feature of collisionless plasma interfaces throughout astrophysical environments.