  Collisionless shocks play a role in many astrophysical phenomena, from
coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in the heliosphere to supernova remnants. Their
role in heating and accelerating particles is well accepted yet the exact
mechanism for ion heating is not well understood. Two systems, CMEs and
supernova remnants, were examined to determine the heating of heavy ions as
they pass through collisionless shocks thus providing a seed population for
cosmic ray acceleration processes. Three parameters are examined, the plasma
beta, the Mach number of the shock and the magnetic angle of the shock. CMEs
heat heavy ions preferentially. This is in contrast to the supernova data which
shows less than mass proportional heating. In addition to these studies,
heating in astrophysical systems involves neutral atoms. A Monte Carlo model
simulated neutral particles as they pass through the shock. Neutrals can create
a precursor to the shock additionally heating the plasma. This work uses in
situ data from the heliosphere to study astronomical systems because of common
shock properties is a unique way to study magnetic components of shocks
remotely.
