The magnetic annular shock tube uses a magnetic field to drive a shock wave through an annular region, producing a very high‐temperature plasma [cf. R. M. Patrick, Phys. Fluids 2, 589 (1959)]. It is shown that this particular configuration allows a fairly precise calculation of the flow parameters. Numerical calculations of the significant flow properties for a complete range of the initial field strength and orientation have been made and are presented graphically.