The cyclical variation of energy flux and photospheric magnetic field strength from coronal holes

We measured the average soft X-ray emission from coronal holes observed on images obtained during AS & E rocket flights from 1974 to 1981. The variation of this emission over the solar cycle was then compared with photospheric magnetic flux measurements within coronal holes over the same period. We found that coronal hole soft X-ray emission could be detected and that this emission appeared to increase with the rise of the sunspot cycle from activity minimum to maximum. Our quantitative results confirmed previous suggestions that the coronal brightness contrast between holes and large-scale structure decreased during this period of the cycle. Gas pressures at the hole base were estimated for assumed temperatures and found to vary from about 0.03 dyne cm^–2 in 1974 to 0.35 dyne cm^–2 in 1981. The increase in coronal hole X-ray emission was accompanied by a similar trend in the surface magnetic flux of near-equatorial holes between 1975 and 1980 (Harvey et al., 1982).     

Characteristics of the Re-Calculated <Emphasis Type="Italic">Yohkoh</Emphasis>/SXT Temperature Response

The temperature response functions of the Yohkoh/SXT are re-calculated based on the most recent elemental abundances and ionization balance available in the CHIANTI atomic database version 6.0.1. The new standard responses are calculated for three types of abundance; i.e., ‘coronal’, ‘hybrid’, and ‘photospheric’ abundances included in the CHIANTI database, and are available in SolarSoft since 2010. Comparison plots of the new and old response functions and filter ratios are available at the Yohkoh Legacy data Archive (). The three new responses generally peak at higher temperatures (at ≈ 10 MK) than the former standard response (at ≈ 5.6 MK) based on Mewe’s spectral model. The new responses with coronal and hybrid abundances have higher peak counts by a factor of 3 and 2, respectively, than those with the photospheric abundances and the former response based on Mewe’s model. The correction of the filter ratios depends on the type of filter and the range of the ratios to be used. In the significant cases, the new filter ratio produces 20 to 30% higher temperatures than the previous calibration. The choice of elemental abundance has a strong influence on the derived temperatures and emission measures, and often produces a variation significantly larger than the statistical and systematic errors considered so far.     

Electron beam as origin of white-light solar flares

We study the effect of chromospheric bombardment by an electron beam during solar flares. Using a semi-empirical flare model, we investigate energy balance at temperature minimum level and in the upper photosphere. We show that non-thermal hydrogen ionization (i.e., due to the electrons of the beam) leads to an increase of chromospheric hydrogen continuum emission, H^– population, and absorption of photospheric and chromospheric continuum radiation. So, the upper photosphere is radiatively heated by chromospheric continuum radiation produced by the beam. The effect of hydrogen ionization is an enhanced white-light emission both at chromospheric and photospheric level, due to Paschen and H^– continua emission, respectively. We then obtain white-light contrasts compatible with observations, obviously showing the link between white-light flares and atmospheric bombardment by electron beams.     

Calculated solar X-radiation from 1 to 60 Å

The fluxes of about 230 spectral lines in the range 1–60 Å from coronal ions of C, N, O, Ne, Na, Mg, Al, Si, S, Ar, K, Ca, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, and Ni are computed for a range of electron temperature from 10⁵ to 10⁹ K. The relative ion abundances are derived from Jordan's ionization equilibrium calculations. The continuum emission is derived from computations of Landini and Monsignori Fossi with a correction for the free-free emission.     

Nonthermal Electron Energy Deposition in the Chromosphere and the Accompanying Soft x-ray Flare Emission

We analyse four solar flares which have energetic hard X-ray emissions, but unusually low soft X-ray flux and GOES class (C1.0–C5.5). These are compared with two other flares that have soft and hard X-ray emission consistent with a generally observed correlation that shows increasing hard X-ray accompanied by increasing soft X-ray flux. We find that in the four small flares only a small percentage of the nonthermal electron beam energy is deposited in a location where the heating rate of the electron beam exceeds the radiative cooling rate of the ambient plasma. Most of the beam energy is subsequently radiated away into the cool chromosphere and so cannot power chromospheric evaporation thus reducing the soft X-ray emission. We also demonstrate that in the four small flares the nonthermal electron beam energy is insufficient to power the soft X-ray emitting plasma. We deduce that an additional energy source is required, and this could be provided by a DC-electric field (where quasi-static electric field channels in the coronal loops accelerate electrons, and those electrons with velocity below a critical velocity will heat the ambient plasma via Joule heating) in preference to a loop-top thermal source (where heat flux deposited in the corona is conducted along magnetic field lines to the chromosphere, heating the coronal plasma and giving rise to further chromospheric evaporation).     

A continuous spectrum of a white-light flare

White-light continuum was observed at the Norikura Solar Observatory in a 2B flare of 10 September 1974 in the spectral region between 3600 Å and 4000 Å. The duration of continuum emission was 8–12 min. The continuum shows a Balmer free-bound component, but the main contribution to the continuum between 3646 Å and 4000 Å is H^– emission. The white-light continuum, therefore, is thought to be of photospheric origin. The energy loss in the continuum is 10²⁷ erg s^–1.     

Observation of the solar soft X-ray component; study of its relation to transient and slowly-varying phenomena observed at other wavelengths

Solar X-rays from 8–12 Å have been observed with an ion chamber photometer and fluxes derived from the observations after an assumption concerning the spectral distribution. The time variation of the X-ray flux correlates well with the radio flux, plage index, and sunspot number. Comparisons of X-ray and optical events are given; flares seem to produce soft X-rays, but some soft X-ray bursts are apparently not associated with flares. The total energy involved in the soft X-ray bursts may be a significant amount of the total flare radiation.     

Solar and stellar flares

Short-lived increases in the brightness of many red dwarfs have been observed for the last 30 yr, and a variety of more or less exotic models have been proposed to account for such flares. Information about flares in the Sun has progressed greatly in recent years as a result of spacecraft experiments, and properties of coronal flare plasma are becoming increasingly better known. In this paper, after briefly reviewing optical, radio and X-ray observations of stellar flares, we show how a simplified model which describes conductive plus radiative cooling of the coronal flare plasma in solar flares has been modified to apply to optical and X-ray stellar flare phenomena. This model reproduces many characteristic features of stellar flares, including the mean UBV colors of flare light, the direction of flare decay in the two-color diagram, precursors, Stillstands, secondary maxima, lack of sensitivity of flare color to flare amplitude, low flux of flare X-rays, distinction between so-called spike flares and slow flares, Balmer jumps of as much as 6–8, and emission line redshifts up to 3000 km s^–1. In all probability, therefore, stellar flares involve physical processes which are no more exotic (and no less!) than those in solar flares. Advantages of observing stellar flares include the possibilities of (i) applying optical diagnostics to coronal flare plasma, whereas this is almost impossible in the Sun, and (ii) testing solar flare models in environments which are not generally accessible in the solar atmosphere.     

Elemental Abundances in the Solar Corona as Measured by the X-ray Solar Monitor Onboard Chandrayaan-1

The X-ray Solar Monitor (XSM) on the Indian lunar mission Chandrayaan-1 was flown to complement lunar elemental abundance studies by the X-ray fluorescence experiment C1XS. XSM measured the ≈?1.8?–?20 keV solar X-ray spectrum during its nine months of operation in lunar orbit. The soft X-ray spectra can be used to estimate absolute coronal abundances using intensities of emission-line complexes and the plasma temperature derived from the continuum. The best estimates are obtained from the brightest flare observed by XSM: a C2.8-class flare. The well-known first-ionization potential (FIP) effect is observed; abundances are enhanced for the low-FIP elements Fe, Ca, and Si, while the intermediate-FIP element S shows values close to the photospheric abundance. The derived coronal abundances show a quasi-mass-dependent pattern of fractionation.     

Simultaneous measurements of EUV and soft X-ray solar flare emission

Broadband sensors aboard the Naval Research Laboratory's SOLRAD 11 satellites measured solar emission in the 0.5 to 3 Å, 1 to 8 Å, 8 to 20 Å, 100 to 500 Å, 500 to 800 Å, and 700 to 1030 Å bands between March 1976 and October 1979. Measurements of EUV and soft X-ray emission from a large number of solar flares were obtained. Although solar flare measurements in the soft X-ray bands are continuously made and used as a standard of a flare's geophysical significance, direct measurements of flare EUV emission are quite rare. We present measurements of the X-ray and EUV emission from several flares with special emphasis on the relative EUV response associated with flares in different categories determined by 1 to 8 Å soft X-ray flux. An example of a flare exhibiting an impulsive (nonthermal) phase is included.Proceedings of the 14th ESLAB Symposium on Physics of Solar Variations, 16–19 Semptember 1980, Scheveningen, The Netherlands.     

Culgoora radio and skylab euv observations of emerging magnetic flux in the lower corona

Detailed comparisons of Culgoora 160 MHz radioheliograms of solar noise storms and Skylab EUV spectroheliograms of coronal loop structures are presented. It is concluded that: (1) there is a close association between changes in large-scale magnetic fields in the corona and the onset or cessation of noise storms; (2) these coronal changes result from the emergence of new magnetic flux at the photospheric level; (3) although new magnetic flux at the photospheric level is often accompanied by an increase in flare activity the latter is not directly responsible for noise storm activity; rather the new magnetic flux diffuses slowly outwards through the corona at rates 1–2 km s^–1 and produces noise storms at 160 MHz 1–2 days later; (4) the coronal density above or in large-scale EUV loop systems is sufficiently dense to account for noise storm emission at the fundamental plasma frequency; (5) the scatter in noise storm positions can be accounted for by the appearance and disappearance of individual loops in a system.     

Analysis of EUV limb brightening observations from ATM

Magnetic fields in the low corona are the only plausible source of energy for solar flares. Other energy sources appear inadequate or uncorrelated with flares. Low coronal magnetic fields cannot be measured accurately, so most attention has been directed toward measurements of the photospheric magnetic fields from which coronal developments may be inferred. Observations of these magnetic fields are reviewed. It is concluded that, except possibly for the largest flares, changes in the photospheric magnetic fields in flaring centers are confined to evolutionary changes associated with emergence of new magnetic flux. Flare observations with the 10830 Å line of helium, in particular, are discussed. It is concluded that the brightest flare knots appear near points of emergent magnetic flux. Pre-flare activation and eruptions of H filaments are discussed. It is concluded that the rapid motions in filaments indicate unambiguously that the magnetic fields in the low corona are severely disrupted prior to most flares. The coronal signature of H filament eruptions is illustrated with soft X-ray photographs from the S-054 experiment of the NASA Skylab mission. An attempt is made, by studying X-ray flare morphology, to determine whether flares grow by reconnections between adjacent or intertwined magnetic elements or by triggering, in which each flaring loop drives adjacent loops to unstable states. It is concluded that successive loop brightenings are most easily interpreted as the result of magnetic field reconnections, although better time resolution is required to settle the question. A model of magnetic field reconnections for flares associated with filament activation and emerging magnetic flux is presented.     

Solar flare neutrons and their capture gamma ray emission

We briefly describe our recent Monte Carlo calculations of the energy and angular distributions of neutrons escaping from the solar atmosphere. Comparing the calculation results with measurements of the neutron flux from the flares, we determined the angular distribution and energy spectrum of the accelerated ions. We also describe our calculations of the time dependence of the 2.223 MeV line emission, which provide a sensitive measure of the photospheric ³He abundance. We find that the SMM measurements of the time dependence of the 2.2 MeV line emission from the flare of 1982 June 3 imply a ³He/H ratio of (2.3±1.2)×10^–5 at the 90% confidence level.     

Pre-flare association of magnetic fields and millimeter-wave radio emission

Observations of radio emission at 3.3 mm wavelength associated with magnetic fields in active regions are reported. Results of more than 200 regions during the years 1967–1968 show a strong correlation between peak enhanced millimeter emission, total flux of the longitudinal component of photospheric magnetic fields and the number of flares produced during transit of active regions. For magnetic flux greater than 10²¹ maxwells flares will occur and for flux of 10²³ maxwells the sum of the H flare importance numbers is about 40. The peak millimeter enhancement increases with magnetic flux for regions which subsequently flared. Estimates of the magnetic energy available and the correlation with flare production indicate that the photospheric fields and probably chromospheric currents are responsible for the observed pre-flare heating and provide the energy of flares.This work was supported in part by NASA Contract No. NAS2-7868 and in part by Company funds of The Aerospace Corporation.     

UV Observations with the Transition Region and Coronal Explorer

The Transition Region and Coronal Explorer is a space-borne solar telescope featuring high spatial and temporal resolution. TRACE images emission from solar plasmas in three extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) wavelengths and several ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths, covering selected ion temperatures from 6000 K to 1 MK. The TRACE UV channel employs special optics to collect high-resolution solar images of the H i L line at 1216 Å, the C iv resonance doublet at 1548 and 1550 Å, the UV continuum near 1550 Å, and also a white-light image covering the spectrum from 2000–8000 Å.We present an analytical technique for creating photometrically accurate images of the C iv resonance lines from the data products collected by the TRACE UV channel. We use solar spectra from several space-borne instruments to represent a variety of solar conditions ranging from quiet Sun to active regions to derive a method, using a linear combination of filtered UV images, to generate an image of solar C iv 1550 Å emission. Systematic and statistical error estimates are also presented. This work indicates that C iv measurements will be reliable for intensities greater than 1014 photons s–1 cm–2 sr–1. This suggests that C iv 1550 Å images will be feasible with statistical error below 20% in the magnetic network, bright points, active regions, flares and other features bright in C iv. Below this intensity the derived image is dominated by systematic error and read noise from the CCD.     

Solar hard X-ray bursts

The major results from SMM are presented as they relate to our understanding of the energy release and particle transportation processes that lead to the high-energy X-ray aspects of solar flares. Evidence is reviewed for a 152–158 day periodicity in various aspects of solar activity including the rate of occurrence of hard X-ray and gamma-ray flares. The statistical properties of over 7000 hard X-ray flares detected with the Hard X-Ray Burst Spectrometer are presented including the spectrum of peak rates and the distribution of the photon number spectrum. A flare classification scheme introduced by Tanaka is used to divide flares into three different types. Type A flares have purely thermal, compact sources with very steep hard X-ray spectra. Type B flares are impulsive bursts which show double footpoints in hard X-rays, and soft-hard-soft spectral evolution. Type C flares have gradually varying hard X-ray and microwave fluxes from high altitudes and show hardening of the X-ray spectrum through the peak and on the decay. SMM data are presented for examples of type B and type C events. New results are presented showing coincident hard X-rays, O v, and UV continuum observations in type B events with a time resolution of 128 ms. The subsecond variations in the hard X-ray flux during 10% of the stronger events are discussed and the fastest observed variation in a time of 20 ms is presented. The properties of type C flares are presented as determined primarily from the non-imaged hard X-ray and microwave spectral data. A model based on the association of type C flares and coronal mass ejections is presented to explain many of the characteristics of these gradual flares.     

Measuring the Physical Properties of the Solar Corona: Results from SUMER/SOHO and TRACE

Using SUMER observations taken above the limb of a quiet region we derive electron temperatures, emission measures, and absolute elemental abundances. This analysis, which uses recently published ionization balance calculations and the latest solar photospheric abundances, indicates that the low-FIP elements are enriched by a factor of 2.3±0.7 in the corona, which is smaller than some previous measurements. TRACE observations of this region yield systematically lower temperatures and emission measures.     

5303 Å Coronal Irradiance and Its Relation to the Photospheric Magnetic Activity

The association of Lomnický tít data of coronal green line irradiance (CI) to photospheric magnetic activity is studied for the years 1975–1994 using the Carrington rotation averaged photospheric magnetic flux data. It is found that the CI correlates well with photospheric magnetic flux of active regions and the total disk-integrated magnetic flux on longer time scales (11-year solar cycle) and fails (about 50% of the time) to show a strong dependence on shorter time scales. A comparison of the association of CI and of the 10.7 cm radio flux with the photospheric magnetic flux data indicated that the CI might basically represent the background coronal irradiance.     

On the spatial and temporal characteristics and formation mechanisms of soft X-ray emission in the solar corona

Our main goal is to show that the spatial and temporal dynamics of the temperature content for plasma structures in the solar corona can be described quantitatively in principle, which is necessary for understanding the formation mechanisms of soft X-ray emission. An approach based on a consistent modeling of complex data from the CORONAS-F, GOES, and RHESSI satellites is suggested. A basically new element of this approach is the use of time series of monochromatic full-Sun images in the X-ray MgXII 8.42 Å line and EUV lines obtained in the SPIRIT experiment onboard CORONAS-F. Two inversion procedures have been used to determine the volume and column differential emission measures defined by the Stieltjes integral: an optimization one based on a multitemperature parametric model and an iterative one based on the Bayesian theorem, respectively. The calculations with coronal abundances agree with the RHESSI data within the experimental error limits, while those with photospheric abundances give no satisfactory agreement. The relatively cold (with temperature 2–4 MK) and transient (4–10 MK) plasmas are shown to play a significant role in producing soft X-ray emission during flare events and in their energy budget. The spatial electron density and temperature distributions and their time evolution have been obtained for long-duration events that were first observed in the monochromatic MgXII channel and were previously called “spiders.” The method used has allowed us to verify the absolute intercalibration of the fluxes recorded in all experiments and to reference the SPIRIT MgXII images to the solar disk. We also consider possible flare plasma heating mechanisms for impulsive and long-duration (spider) flare events.     

Photospheric Magnetic Evolution in the WHI Active Regions

Sequences of line-of-sight (LOS) magnetograms recorded by the Michelson Doppler Imager are used to quantitatively characterize photospheric magnetic structure and evolution in three active regions that rotated across the Sun??s disk during the Whole Heliosphere Interval (WHI), in an attempt to relate the photospheric magnetic properties of these active regions to flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Several approaches are used in our analysis, on scales ranging from whole active regions, to magnetic features, to supergranular scales, and, finally, to individual pixels. We calculated several parameterizations of magnetic structure and evolution that have previously been associated with flare and CME activity, including total unsigned magnetic flux, magnetic flux near polarity-inversion lines, amount of canceled flux, the ??proxy Poynting flux,?? and helicity flux. To catalog flare events, we used flare lists derived from both GOES and RHESSI observations. By most such measures, AR 10988 should have been the most flare- and CME-productive active region, and AR 10989 the least. Observations, however, were not consistent with this expectation: ARs 10988 and 10989 produced similar numbers of flares, and AR 10989 also produced a few CMEs. These results highlight present limitations of statistics-based flare and CME forecasting tools that rely upon line-of-sight photospheric magnetic data alone.