MHD turbulence: resolving astrophysical puzzles

Turbulence and magnetic fields are ubiquitous in the Universe. Their importance to astronomy cannot be overestimated. Constructing predictive theories of the magnetic field generation by turbulence, the dissipation of MHD turbulence, and the interaction of energetic particles and magnetized turbulence are at the core of my thesis. These fundamental non-linear processes are usually addressed numerically. My thesis work provided analytical predictions, which either have been confirmed by numerical simulations or are in physical regimes beyond current computational power. In my talk, I will present some examples for the application of my theories in resolving diverse long-standing astrophysical puzzles, and in particular, a new mechanism of particle acceleration in high-energy astrophysical environments such as Gamma-Ray Bursts.