The Plate Scale of the SODISM Instrument and the Determination of the Solar Radius at 607.1 nm

Knowledge of the Solar Diameter Imager and Surface Mapper (SODISM) plate scale is a fundamental parameter for obtaining the solar radius. We have determined the plate scale of the telescope on the ground and in flight onboard the Picard spacecraft. The results show significant differences; the main reason is that the conditions of observation are not the same. In addition, the space environment has an impact on the performance of a metrology instrument. Therefore, calibration in space and under the same conditions of observation is crucial. The transit of Venus allowed us to determine the plate scale of the SODISM telescope and hence the absolute value of the solar radius. The transit was observed from space by the Picard spacecraft on 5?–?6 June 2012. We exploited the data recorded by SODISM to determine the plate scale of the instrument, which depends on the characteristics of optical elements (mirrors, filters, or front window). The mean plate scale at 607.1 nm is found to be 1.0643 arcseconds?pixel^?1 with 3×10^?4 RMS. The solar radius at 607.1 nm from 1 AU is found to be equal to 959.86 arcseconds.     

SOVAP/Picard,a Spaceborne Radiometer to Measure the Total Solar Irradiance

The Picard spacecraft was successfully launched on 15 June 2010, into a Sun-synchronous orbit. The mission represents one of the European contributions to solar observations and Essential Climate Variables (ECVs) measurements. The payload is composed of a Solar Diameter Imager and Surface Mapper (SODISM) and two radiometers: SOlar VAriability Picard (SOVAP) and PREcision MOnitor Sensor (PREMOS). SOVAP, a dual side-by-side cavity radiometer, measures the total solar irradiance (TSI). It is the sixth of a series of differential absolute-radiometer-type instruments developed and operated in space by the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium. The measurements of SOVAP in the summer of 2010 yielded a TSI value of 1362.1 W?m^?2 with an uncertainty of ±?2.4 W?m^?2 (k=1). During the periods of November 2010 and January 2013, the amplitude of the changes in TSI has been on the order of 0.18 %, corresponding to a range of about 2.4 W?m^?2.     

Solar Wind Plasma Particles Organized by the Flow Speed

An understanding of solar variability over a broad spectral range and broad range of timescales is needed by scientists studying Earth’s climate. The Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor (TSIS) Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM), is designed to measure solar spectral irradiance (SSI) with unprecedented accuracy from 200 nm to 2400 nm. SIM started daily observations in March 2018. To maintain its accuracy over the course of its anticipated 5-year mission and beyond, TSIS SIM needs to be corrected for optical degradation, common for solar viewing instruments. The differing long-term trends of various independent solar-irradiance records attest to the challenge at hand.

The correction of TSIS SIM for optical degradation is based on piecewise linear fits that bring the three instrument channels into agreement. It is fundamentally different to the correction applied to the TSIS SIM predecessor on SORCE. The correction facilitates reproducibility, uncertainty estimation and is measurement-based. Corrected, integrated TSIS SIM SSI agrees with independent observations of total solar irradiance to within 45 ppm as well as various solar-irradiance models. TSIS SIM SSI is available at: http://lasp.colorado.edu/lisird/.

     

Comparison of Solar UV Spectral Irradiance from SUSIM and SORCE

Knowledge of solar spectral irradiance (SSI) is important in determining the impact of solar variability on climate. Observations of UV SSI have been made by the Solar Ultraviolet Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SUSIM) on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS), the Solar-Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment (SOLSTICE), and the Solar Irradiance Monitor (SIM), both on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) satellite. Measurements by SUSIM and SORCE overlapped from 2003 to 2005. SUSIM and SORCE observations represent ～?20 years of absolute UV SSI. Unfortunately, significant differences exist between these two data sets. In particular, changes in SORCE UV SSI measurements, gathered at moderate and minimum solar activity, are a factor of two greater than the changes in SUSIM observations over the entire solar cycle. In addition, SORCE UV SSI have a substantially different relationship with the Mg ii index than did earlier UV SSI observations. Acceptance of these new SORCE results impose significant changes on our understanding of UV SSI variation. Alternatively, these differences in UV SSI observations indicate that some or all of these instruments have changes in instrument responsivity that are not fully accounted for by the current calibration. In this study, we compare UV SSI changes from SUSIM with those from SIM and SOLSTICE. The primary results are that (1) long-term observations by SUSIM and SORCE generally do not agree during the overlap period (2003?–?2005), (2) SUSIM observations during this overlap period are consistent with an SSI model based on Mg ii and early SUSIM SSI, and (3) when comparing the spectral irradiance for times of similar solar activity on either side of solar minimum, SUSIM observations show slight differences while the SORCE observations show variations that increase with time between spectra. Based on this work, we conclude that the instrument responsivity for SOLSTICE and SIM need to be reevaluated before these results can be used for climate-modeling studies.     

A Sunspot Catalog for the Period 1952 – 1986 from Observations Made at the Madrid Astronomical Observatory

The Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM) instrument on board the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) performs daily measurements of the solar spectral irradiance (SSI) from 200 to 2400 nm. Both temporal and spectral corrections for instrument degradation have been built on physical models based on comparison of two independent channels with different solar exposure. The present study derives a novel correction for SIM degradation using the total solar irradiance (TSI) measurements from the Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) on SORCE. The correction is applied to SIM SSI data from September 2004 to October 2012 over the wavelength range from 205 nm to 2300 nm. The change in corrected, integrated SSI agrees within \(0.1~\mbox{W}\,\mbox{m}^{-2}\) (\(1\sigma\)) with SORCE TIM TSI and independently shows agreement with the SATIRE-S and NRLSSI2 solar models within measurement uncertainties.

     

Decoupling Solar Variability and Instrument Trends Using the Multiple Same-Irradiance-Level (MuSIL) Analysis Technique

The solar spectral irradiance (SSI) dataset is a key record for studying and understanding the energetics and radiation balance in Earth’s environment. Understanding the long-term variations of the SSI over timescales of the 11-year solar activity cycle and longer is critical for many Sun–Earth research topics. Satellite measurements of the SSI have been made since the 1970s, most of them in the ultraviolet, but recently also in the visible and near-infrared. A limiting factor for the accuracy of previous solar variability results is the uncertainties for the instrument degradation corrections, which need fairly large corrections relative to the amount of solar cycle variability at some wavelengths. The primary objective of this investigation has been to separate out solar cycle variability and any residual uncorrected instrumental trends in the SSI measurements from the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) mission and the Thermosphere, Mesosphere, Ionosphere, Energetic, and Dynamics (TIMED) mission. A new technique called the Multiple Same-Irradiance-Level (MuSIL) analysis has been developed, which examines an SSI time series at different levels of solar activity to provide long-term trends in an SSI record, and the most common result is a downward trend that most likely stems from uncorrected instrument degradation. This technique has been applied to each wavelength in the SSI records from SORCE (2003?–?present) and TIMED (2002?–?present) to provide new solar cycle variability results between 27 nm and 1600 nm with a resolution of about 1 nm at most wavelengths. This technique, which was validated with the highly accurate total solar irradiance (TSI) record, has an estimated relative uncertainty of about 5% of the measured solar cycle variability. The MuSIL results are further validated with the comparison of the new solar cycle variability results from different solar cycles.     

Solar–Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment II (Solstice II): Instrument Concept and Design

The Solar–Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment II (SOLSTICE II) is one of four experiments launched aboard the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) on 25 January, 2003. Its principal science objectives are to measure solar spectral irradiance from 115 to 320 nm with a spectral resolution of 1 nm, a cadence of 6 h, and an accuracy of 5% and to determine solar variability with a relative accuracy of 0.5% per year during a 5-year long nominal mission. SOLSTICE II meets these objectives using a pair of identical scanning grating monochromators that can measure both solar and stellar irradiance. Instrument radiometric responsivity was calibrated to ∼3% absolute accuracy before launch using the Synchrotron Ultraviolet Radiation Facility (SURF) at the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, MD. During orbital operations, SOLSTICE II has been making daily measurements of both the Sun and an ensemble of bright, stable, main-sequence B and A stars. The stellar measurements allow the tracking of changes in instrument responsivity with a relative accuracy of 0.5% per year over the life of the mission. SOLSTICE II is an evolution of the SOLSTICE i instrument that is currently operating on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). This paper reviews the basic SOLSTICE concept and describes the design, operating modes, and early performance of the SOLSTICE II instrument.     

JPEG2000 Image Compression on Solar EUV Images

For future solar missions as well as ground-based telescopes, efficient ways to return and process data have become increasingly important. Solar Orbiter, which is the next ESA/NASA mission to explore the Sun and the heliosphere, is a deep-space mission, which implies a limited telemetry rate that makes efficient onboard data compression a necessity to achieve the mission science goals. Missions like the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and future ground-based telescopes such as the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, on the other hand, face the challenge of making petabyte-sized solar data archives accessible to the solar community. New image compression standards address these challenges by implementing efficient and flexible compression algorithms that can be tailored to user requirements. We analyse solar images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument onboard SDO to study the effect of lossy JPEG2000 (from the Joint Photographic Experts Group 2000) image compression at different bitrates. To assess the quality of compressed images, we use the mean structural similarity (MSSIM) index as well as the widely used peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) as metrics and compare the two in the context of solar EUV images. In addition, we perform tests to validate the scientific use of the lossily compressed images by analysing examples of an on-disc and off-limb coronal-loop oscillation time-series observed by AIA/SDO.     

Solar Spectral Irradiance Variability in November/December 2012: Comparison of Observations by Instruments on the International Space Station and Models

Onboard the International Space Station (ISS), two instruments are observing the solar spectral irradiance (SSI) at wavelengths from 16 to 2900 nm. Although the ISS platform orientation generally precludes pointing at the Sun more than 10?–?14 days per month, in November/December 2012 a continuous period of measurements was obtained by implementing an ISS ‘bridging’ maneuver. This enabled observations to be made of the solar spectral irradiance (SSI) during a complete solar rotation. We present these measurements, which quantify the impact of active regions on SSI, and compare them with data simultaneously gathered from other platforms, and with models of spectral irradiance variability. Our analysis demonstrates that the instruments onboard the ISS have the capability to measure SSI variations consistent with other instruments in space. A comparison among all available SSI measurements during November–December 2012 in absolute units with reconstructions using solar proxies and observed solar activity features is presented and discussed in terms of accuracy.     

The Mg II Index from SORCE

The Solar–Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment (SOLSTICE) and the Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM) on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) both measure the solar ultraviolet irradiance surrounding the Mg II doublet at 280 nm on a daily basis. The SIM instrument's resolution (1.1 nm) is similar to the Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet instruments used to compute the standard NOAA Mg II index, while SOLSTICE's resolution is an order of magnitude higher (0.1 nm). This paper describes the technique used to calculate the index for both instruments and compares the resulting time series for the first 18 months of the SORCE mission. The spectral resolution and low noise of the SOLSTICE spectrum produces a Mg II index with a precision of 0.6%, roughly a factor of 2 better than the low-resolution index measurement. The full-resolution SOLSTICE index is able to measure short-timescale changes in the solar radiative output that are lost in the noise of the low-resolution index.     

Solar Irradiance from 165 to 400 nm in 2008 and UV Variations in Three Spectral Bands During Solar Cycle 24

Accurate measurements of the solar spectral irradiance (SSI) and its temporal variations are of primary interest to better understand solar mechanisms, and the links between solar variability and Earth’s atmosphere and climate. The SOLar SPECtrum (SOLSPEC) instrument of the Solar Monitoring Observatory (SOLAR) payload onboard the International Space Station (ISS) has been built to carry out SSI measurements from 165 to 3088 nm. We focus here on the ultraviolet (UV) part of the measured solar spectrum (wavelengths less than 400 nm) because the UV part is potentially important for understanding the solar forcing of Earth’s atmosphere and climate. We present here SOLAR/SOLSPEC UV data obtained since 2008, and their variations in three spectral bands during Solar Cycle 24. They are compared with previously reported UV measurements and model reconstructions, and differences are discussed.     

Observations of Solar EUV Radiation with the CORONAS-F/SPIRIT and SOHO/EIT Instruments

The SPIRIT complex onboard the CORONAS-F satellite has routinely imaged the Sun in the 171, 175, 195, 284, and 304 Å spectral bands since August 2001. The complex incorporates two telescopes. The Ritchey-Chretien telescope operates in the 171, 195, 284, and 304 Å bands and has an objective similar to that of the SOHO/EIT instrument. The Herschel telescope obtains solar images synchronously in the 175 and 304 Å bands with two multilayer-coated parabolic mirrors. The SPIRIT program includes synoptic observations, studies of the dynamics of various structures on the solar disk and in the corona up to 5 solar radii, and coordinated observations with other spaceborne and ground-based telescopes. In particular, in the period 2002–2003, synoptic observations with the SPIRIT Ritchey-Chretien telescope were coordinated with regular 6-hour SOHO/EIT observations. Since June 2003, when EIT data were temporarily absent (SOHO keyholes), the SPIRIT telescope has performed synoptic observations at a wavelength of 175 A. These data were used by the Solar Influence Data Analysis Center (SIDC) at the Royal Observatory of Belgium for an early space weather forecast. We analyze the photometric and spectral parameters of the SPIRIT and EIT instruments and compare the integrated (over the solar disk) EUV fluxes using solar images obtained with these instruments during the CORONAS-F flight from August 2001 through December 2003.     

Solar Orbiter

The heliosphere represents a uniquely accessible domain of space, where fundamental physical processes common to solar, astrophysical and laboratory plasmas can be studied under conditions impossible to reproduce on Earth and unfeasible to observe from astronomical distances. Solar Orbiter, the first mission of ESA’s Cosmic Vision 2015?–?2025 programme, will address the central question of heliophysics: How does the Sun create and control the heliosphere? In this paper, we present the scientific goals of the mission and provide an overview of the mission implementation.     

A New Solar Spectrum from 656 to 3088 nm

The solar spectrum is a key parameter for different scientific disciplines such as solar physics, climate research, and atmospheric physics. The SOLar SPECtrometer (SOLSPEC) instrument of the Solar Monitoring Observatory (SOLAR) payload onboard the International Space Station (ISS) has been built to measure the solar spectral irradiance (SSI) from 165 to 3088 nm with high accuracy. To cover the full wavelength range, three double-monochromators with concave gratings are used. We present here a thorough analysis of the data from the third channel/double-monochromator, which covers the spectral range between 656 and 3088 nm. A new reference solar spectrum is therefore obtained in this mainly infrared wavelength range (656 to 3088 nm); it uses an absolute preflight calibration performed with the blackbody of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB). An improved correction of temperature effects is also applied to the measurements using in-flight housekeeping temperature data of the instrument. The new solar spectrum (SOLAR–IR) is in good agreement with the ATmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science (ATLAS?3) reference solar spectrum from 656 nm to about 1600 nm. However, above 1600 nm, it agrees better with solar reconstruction models than with spacecraft measurements. The new SOLAR/SOLSPEC measurement of solar spectral irradiance at about 1600 nm, corresponding to the minimum opacity of the solar photosphere, is 248.08 ± 4.98 mW?m^?2?nm^?1 (1?\(\sigma\)), which is higher than recent ground-based evaluations.     

Periodic and quasi-periodic motions of a solar sail close to SL 1 in the Earth–Sun system

Solar sails are a proposed form of spacecraft propulsion using large membrane mirrors to propel a satellite taking advantage of the solar radiation pressure. To model the dynamics of a solar sail we have considered the Earth–Sun Restricted Three Body Problem including the Solar radiation pressure (RTBPS). This model has a 2D surface of equilibrium points parametrised by the two angles that define the sail orientation. In this paper we study the non-linear dynamics close to an equilibrium point, with special interest in the bounded motion. We focus on the region of equilibria close to SL ₁, a collinear equilibrium point that lies between the Earth and the Sun when the sail is perpendicular to the Sun–sail direction. For different fixed sail orientations we find families of planar, vertical and Halo-type orbits. We have also computed the centre manifold around different equilibria and used it to describe the quasi-periodic motion around them. We also show how the geometry of the phase space varies with the sail orientation. These kind of studies can be very useful for future mission applications.     

The Solar Ultraviolet Spectrum Estimated Using the Mg <Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">ii</Emphasis> Index and Ca <Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">ii</Emphasis> K Disk Activity

As part of a program to estimate the solar spectrum back to the early twentieth century, we have generated fits to UV spectral irradiance measurements from 1 – 410 nm. The longer wavelength spectra (150 – 410 nm) were fit as a function of two solar activity proxies, the Mg ii core-to-wing ratio, or Mg ii index, and the total Ca ii K disk activity derived from ground based observations. Irradiance spectra at shorter wavelengths (1 – 150 nm) where used to generate fits to the Mg ii core-to-wing ratio alone. Two sets of spectra were used in these fitting procedures. The fits at longer wavelengths (150 to 410 nm) were derived from the high-resolution spectra taken by the Solar Ultraviolet Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SUSIM) on the Upper Atmospheric Research Satellite (UARS). Spectra measured by the Solar EUV Experiment (SEE) instrument on the Thermosphere Ionosphere Mesosphere Energetics and Dynamics (TIMED) satellite were used for the fits at wavelengths from 1 to 150 nm. To generate fits between solar irradiance and solar proxies, this study uses the above irradiance data, the NOAA composite Mg ii index, and daily Ca ii K disk activity determined from images measured by Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO). In addition to the fitting coefficients between irradiance and solar proxies, other results from this study include an estimated relationship between the fraction of the disk with enhanced Ca ii K activity and the Mg ii index, an upper bound of the average solar UV spectral irradiance during periods where the solar disk contains only regions of the quiet Sun, as was believed to be present during the Maunder Minimum, as well as results indicating that slightly more than 60% of the total solar irradiance (TSI) variability occurs between 150 and 400 nm.     

Helium 10830 Å measurements of the Sun

Measurements of the Sun in the near-infrared He i 10830 Å absorption line were performed using the echelle spectrograph with a dispersion of 6.71 mÅ per pixel at the Vacuum Tower Telescope (German Solar Telescopes, Teide Observatory, Izaña, Tenerife, Spain) on May 26, 1993. These measurements were compared with full-disc soft X-ray images of the Sun (Japanese solar satellite Yohkoh), full-disc solar images in H (Big Bear Solar Observatory), full-disc solar images in the He i 10830 Å line (National Solar Observatory, Kitt Peak) and with full-disc microwave solar maps at 37 GHz (Metsähovi Radio Research Station). In the He 10830 Å line the Sun displays a limb darkening similar to that in the visible part of the spectrum. Active regions and H filaments show a strong absorption in the He 10830 Å line, whereas the absorption is weak in coronal holes.     

Automated Detection of Filaments and Their Disappearance Using Full-Disc Hα Images

A new algorithm is presented that automatically detects filaments on the Sun in full-disc Hα images. Pre-processing of Hα images includes corrections for limb darkening and foreshortening. Further, by applying suitable intensity and size thresholds, filaments are extracted, while other solar features, e.g. sunspots and plages, are removed. Filament attributes such as their position on the solar disc, total area, length, and number of fragments are determined. In addition, every filament is also labelled with a unique number for identification. The algorithm is capable of following a particular filament through successive images, which allows us to detect their changes and disappearance. We have analysed ten cases of filament eruption from different observatories, and the results obtained are presented. The algorithm will eventually be integrated with an upcoming telescope at the Udaipur Solar Observatory for real-time monitoring of activated/eruptive filaments. This aspect should prove to be of particular importance in studies pertaining to space weather.     

The Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM): Early Observations

This paper presents and interprets observations obtained by the Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SIM) on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) over a time period of several solar rotations during the declining phase of solar cycle 23. The time series of visible and infrared (IR) bands clearly show significant wavelength dependence of these variations. At some wavelengths the SIM measurements are qualitatively similar to the Mg II core-to-wing ratio, but in the visible and IR they show character similar to the Total Solar Irradiance (TSI) variations. Despite this overall similarity, different amplitudes, phases, and temporal features are observed at various wavelengths. The TSI can be explained as a complex sum of the various wavelength components. The SIM observations are interpreted with the aid of solar images that exhibit a mixture of solar activity features. Qualitative analysis shows how the sunspots, faculae, plage, and active network provide distinct contributions to the spectral irradiance at different wavelengths, and ultimately, how these features combine to produce the observed TSI variations. Most of the observed variability appears to be qualitatively explained by solar surface features related directly to the magnetic activity.     

Solar Spectral Irradiance Variations in 240 – 1600 nm During the Recent Solar Cycles 21 – 23

Regular solar spectral irradiance (SSI) observations from space that simultaneously cover the UV, visible (vis), and the near-IR (NIR) spectral region began with SCIAMACHY aboard ENVISAT in August 2002. Up to now, these direct observations cover less than a decade. In order for these SSI measurements to be useful in assessing the role of the Sun in climate change, records covering more than an eleven-year solar cycle are required. By using our recently developed empirical SCIA proxy model, we reconstruct daily SSI values over several decades by using solar proxies scaled to short-term SCIAMACHY solar irradiance observations to describe decadal irradiance changes. These calculations are compared to existing solar data: the UV data from SUSIM/UARS, from the DeLand & Cebula satellite composite, and the SIP model (S2K+VUV2002); and UV-vis-IR data from the NRLSSI and SATIRE models, and SIM/SORCE measurements. The mean SSI of the latter models show good agreement (less than 5%) in the vis regions over three decades while larger disagreements (10 – 20%) are found in the UV and IR regions. Between minima and maxima of Solar Cycles 21, 22, and 23, the inferred SSI variability from the SCIA proxy is intermediate between SATIRE and NRLSSI in the UV. While the DeLand & Cebula composite provide the highest variability between solar minimum and maximum, the SIP/Solar2000 and NRLSSI models show minimum variability, which may be due to the use of a single proxy in the modeling of the irradiances. In the vis-IR spectral region, the SCIA proxy model reports lower values in the changes from solar maximum to minimum, which may be attributed to overestimations of the sunspot proxy used in modeling the SCIAMACHY irradiances. The fairly short timeseries of SIM/SORCE shows a steeper decreasing (increasing) trend in the UV (vis) than the other data during the descending phase of Solar Cycle 23. Though considered to be only provisional, the opposite trend seen in the visible SIM data challenges the validity of proxy-based linear extrapolation commonly used in reconstructing past irradiances.