Energy of solar noise-storm radio bursts

Solar noise storms (NS) are analyzed by an algorithm which separates a random signal into pulses. The burst duration distribution is shown to be inversely proportional to the squared duration of bursts. The distribution ordinates are proportional to the average pulse repetition frequency, and the distribution maximum corresponds to the limiting pulse duration equal to 0.4–0.6 s. The aggregate lifetime of all short-lasting bursts is approximately equal to the aggregate lifetime of bursts of any other duration. The energy of short-lasting bursts with a duration of 0.2–0.4 s is five times smaller than the energy of longer bursts, and it constitutes only 2–5 percent of the energy of the NS burst component. The power of bursts increases as their duration changes from 0.2 to 1.2 s until it reaches some limit at a duration of 1.2–1.4 s. The power of longer bursts remains almost unchanged up to the end of the investigated duration interval (up to durations of 300 s). Solar burst chains can be some superposition of short-lasting bursts on one longer burst. Thus, the burst energy measurements do not support the widespread point of view that solar noise storms consist of short-lasting type I bursts.     

Flux-rms relation in solar radio bursts

One recent discovery that provides a strong constraint on the mechanisms of astrophysical activities is the correlation between the flux and the root-mean-squared (rms) variability of X-ray emission. In this work we study the flux-rms relation of solar radio bursts. Four flares observed by the Solar Radio Broadband Spectrometer (SRBS) of China are analyzed. In these flares, fine structures (FSs) emerge at least in one frequency band of SRBS. We find that the flux-rms relation consists of two components. One relates to the non-FS emission and the other to the FS emission. The flux-rms relationship for the non-FS part of the radio bursts is clearly different from that for the FS part. The former shows a curve-like behavior, while the latter shows a dramatic variation. We propose a model to describe the flux-rms relation of the non-FS part. Our results imply that the non-FS part emission could be triggered by some multiplicative processes. On the contrary, multiplicative mechanisms should be excluded from the explanations of FSs in the radio bursts.     

Interplanetary phenomena and solar radio bursts

The relationship between solar radio emissions and transient interplanetary phenomena is reviewed. It is believed that the most significant advance in recent years has come from coordinated studies of coronal mass ejections and moving type IV bursts, where the evidence appears to favour the Langmuir wave hypothesis as the emission mechanism. Type II bursts are not generally a signature of the main energetic particle acceleration in flares. They do, however, occasionally propagate to 1 AU, and beyond, where they are normally accompanied by protons in the 20 MeV region. Apart from the impulsive microwave burst, there is no reliable radio signature associated with energetic particle acceleration in flares, although many phenomena have high correlations with radio emissions. The exceptions suggest that such correlations may be incidental. Therefore, it is concluded that attention should also be given to events with a positive absence of radio emission in order to make progress in understanding solar processes.Proceedings of the Workshop on Radio Continua during Solar Flares, held at Duino (Trieste), Italy, 27–31 May, 1985.     

Pulsating type IV solar radio bursts

Several models for pulsating type IV radio bursts are presented based on the assumption that the pulsations are the result of fluctuations in the synchrotron emission due to small variations in the magnetic field of the source. It is shown that a source that is optically thick at low frequencies due to synchrotron self-absorption exhibits pulsations that occur in two bands situated on either side of the spectral peak. The pulsations in the two bands are 180° out of phase and the band of pulsations at the higher frequencies is the more intense. In contrast, a synchrotron source that is optically thin at all frequencies and whose low frequency emission is suppressed due to the Razin effect develops only a single band of pulsations around the frequency of maximum emission. However, the flux density associated with the later model would be too small to explain the more intense pulsations that have been observed unless the source area is considerably larger than presently seems reasonable.     

On the relative intensity of second branches of U-like solar radio bursts

The purpose of this note is to examine the suggestion of Fokker (1970) to explain why the second branch of U-bursts is ill-developed and to present an alternate possible explanation which was suggested by an examination of the trajectories derived by him.Postdoctoral Fellow on the U.S.-U.S.S.R. Cultural Exchange     

On the spectra of type-III solar radio bursts observed at low frequencies

The spectra of strong bursts observed at low frequencies by OGO-5 during 1968–1970 are presented. They usually exhibit an intense main peak between 100 kHz and 1 MHz, and sometimes a less intense secondary peak between 1 and 3.5 MHz. Main peaks of 10^–12 Wm^–2 Hz^–1 or more were obtained in very strong events, but because of antenna calibration problems those could be one or two orders of magnitude too high. Recently published work supports the finding that type III bursts at low frequencies can be at least four orders of magnitude more intense than at ground-based frequencies of observation. It is found that the energy received at the Earth increases with decreasing frequency approximately as f ^–n, where 3 n 4.     

Harmonic components of decametric solar radio bursts

Type-IIIb, IIId, and III solar decametric radio bursts, being distinguished by the typical negative drift rate of their dynamic spectra, are compared. Observational data were obtained with a UTR-2 antenna during the period 1973–1982. During the analysis of the bursts of all these spectral varieties, the frequency drift time (drift delay) was measured in the ranges 25 to 12.5 MHz, 25 to 20 MHz, and 12.5 to 10 MHz. Durations of type-III bursts were determined at the harmonically-related frequencies of 25 and 12.5 MHz; radio source locations were also used.It is shown that these decametric bursts are distinctly divided into two groups: (1)type-IIIb chains of simple stria bursts and also normal type-III storm bursts observed at central regions constitute a group of events with a fast drifting spectrum; (2) type-III bursts from type-IIIb-III pairs and the limb variant of normal III bursts, as well as peculiar type-IIId chains of diffuse striae and related chains with an echo component, constitute a second group of events with comparatively slow drift rates.The first group of the phenomena is associated with the fundamental F frequency and the second one, with the harmonic H of the coronal plasma frequency. The results of the present investigation agree well with earlier conclusions on the harmonic origin of decametric chains and type-III bursts. Measurements of drift delays in narrow frequency ranges, an octave apart, as well as type-III burst durations at harmonically-related frequencies confirm the existence of both F and H components in the solar radiation. The essential result of 10 years of decametric observations is that the frequency drift rates and durations are rather stable parameters for the various type-III bursts and stria-burst chains. The stability characterizes some unspecified conditions of burst generation in the middle corona.     

The high-frequency characteristics of solar radio bursts

We compare the millimeter, microwave, and soft X-ray emission from a number of solar flares in order to determine the properties of the high-frequency radio emission of flares. The millimeter observations use a sensitive interferometer at 86 GHz which offers much better sensitivity and spatial resolution than most previous high-frequency observations. We find a number of important results for these flares: (i) the 86 GHz emission onset appears often to be delayed with respect to the microwave onset; (ii) even in large flares the millimeter-wavelength emission can arise in sources of only a few arc sec dimension; (iii) the millimeter emission in the impulsive phase does not correlate with the soft X-ray emission, and thus is unlikely to contain any significant thermal bremsstrahlung component; and (iv) the electron energy distributions implied by the millimeter observations are much flatter (spectral indices of 2.5 to 3.6) than is usual for microwave or hard X-ray observations.     

Wide-band average spectra of solar radio bursts

Peak flux spectra of solar radio bursts in a wide frequency band have been statistically determined for different morphological types of bursts, for various ranges of magnetic field of the burst-associated sunspots and also for the bursts occurring in the central and limb region of the solar disk. Important results obtained are: (i) The generalised spectra have two peaks, one near to meter-wave and the other in the centimeter-wave region, the former peak being more pronounced than the latter; (ii) identical spectral shape is observed for the great and impulsive types and also for GRF and PBI types of bursts; (iii) the radio emission intensity is relatively higher in the central part than that in the limb part of the solar disk for frequencies 1–10 GHz, while the reverse is true for frequencies 0.245–1 GHz and 10–35 GHz; (iv) the optical depth of the absorbing layer above the source of a burst is found to be the same for meter to centimeter-wavelength bursts, implying that the radio sources in this wide band have uniform characteristics with respect to optical thickness; (v) in case of simultaneous emission in the dekameter to X-ray band, most of the decimetric bursts are seen to be very prompt and coincident with the associated flare's starting time. The interpretations of the obtained spectra give an insight into the possible generation mechanisms, pointing to the location of the source region in the solar atmosphere.     

Trajectories followed by U-like solar radio bursts

Radiospectrographic observations of some U-like bursts have been employed in combination with a model coronal condensation due to Waldmeier to derive trajectories along which the disturbing agency, which excites the radio emission, may have travelled. Such trajectories as connect regions of opposite magnetic polarity within one centre of activity should have a parachute-like shape in order to account for the observations. Travelling velocities are of the order of 35000 to 55000 km/sec. Moreover, the distribution of U-like bursts in heliographic longitude is investigated and an attempt is made to explain the fact that the second branches of U-like bursts are less developed than the first branches.     

The solar elongation distribution of low-frequency radio bursts

Over 500 days of low-frequency (<1 MHz) radio observations from the IMP-6 spacecraft have been accumulated to produce a two-dimensional map (frequency vs elongation) of solar type III burst occurrences. This map indicates that most solar bursts in this frequency range are observed at the second harmonic of the plasma frequency rather than the fundamental. The map also shows that the solar wind electron density varies as R ^?γ , where γ can be somewhat less than 2 to perhaps 3 or higher.     

A study of type V solar radio bursts

A model for the solar Type V event is developed. This model assumes that the basic difference between Type III and Type V bursts is the evolution of the electron beam. For a Type V this beam rapidly elongates, so that it takes progressively longer times to pass higher plasma levels. Physical process influencing the beam development, including Coulomb collisions, non-linear interactions with Langmuir waves and wave-particle scattering from various hydromagnetic wave modes is discussed. The model is compared with previously derived models and with observations.Operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. under contract with the National Science Foundation.     

A study of Type V solar radio bursts

Results of an observational study of Type V bursts are presented. Observations were made using the C.S.I.R.O. radioheliograph at Culgoora. Source parameters studied included flux evolution, polarization, size, shape, position, motions and brightness temperature at 160, 80 and 43 MHz. Comparisons of source characteristics observed at different frequencies are made.Operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. under contract with the National Science Foundation.     

A review of solar type III radio bursts

Solar type III radio bursts are an important diagnostic tool in the understanding of solar accelerated electron beams. They are a signature of propagating beams of nonthermal electrons in the solar atmosphere and the solar system. Consequently, they provide information on electron acceleration and transport, and the conditions of the background ambient plasma they travel through. We review the observational properties of type III bursts with an emphasis on recent results and how each property can help identify attributes of electron beams and the ambient background plasma. We also review some of the theoretical aspects of type III radio bursts and cover a number of numerical efforts that simulate electron beam transport through the solar corona and the heliosphere.     

On the source conditions for herringbone structure in type II solar radio bursts

We investigate the correlation of the occurrence of the herringbone phenomenon in type II solar radio bursts with various flare properties. We show that herringbone is strongly correlated with the intensity of the type II burst: whereas about 21% of all type II bursts show herringbone, about 60% of the most intense bursts contain herringbone. This fact can explain most of the correlations between herringbone and other properties such as intense type III bursts, type IV emission, and high type II starting frequencies. We also show that when this is taken into account, there is no need to postulate two classes of type II burst in order to explain why there appears to be a difference in herringbone occurrence between the set of type II bursts associated with the leading edges of coronal mass ejections, and those not so associated. We argue that the data are consistent with the idea that all coronal type II bursts are due to blast waves from flares.     

Type III solar radio bursts and the fundamental-harmonic hypothesis

The observational evidence is reviewed for the occurrence of type III solar radio bursts in pairs with frequency ratio two to one. We show that the observations can be explained under the hypothesis that there is a tendency for a type III burst to be followed by a second burst within approximately one second. This explanation leads to fewer difficulties than the hypothesis that type III bursts occur in pairs, one member being emitted at the fundamental of the local coronal plasma frequency, the other at its second harmonic. We conclude that in general, type III bursts are emitted at the second harmonic of the plasma frequency and that type III theories should account for this and only under very special circumstances (which are rare) for the emission at the fundamental and the second harmonic.     

Correlation of solar decimetric radio bursts with X-ray flares

Several hundred radio bursts in the decimetric wavelength range (300–1000 MHz) have been compared with simultaneous soft and hard X-ray emission. Long lasting (type IV) radio events have been excluded. The association of decimetric emission with hard X-rays has been found to be surprisingly high (48%). The association rate increases with bandwidth, duration, number of structural elements, and maximum frequency. Type III-like bursts are observed up to the upper limit of the observed band. This demonstrates that the corona is transparent up to densities of about 10¹⁰ cm^–3, contrary to previous assumptions. This can only be explained in an inhomogeneous corona with the radio source being located in a dense structure. The short decimetric bursts generally occur during the impulsive phase, i.e. simultaneously with hard X-rays. The times of maximum flux are well correlated (within 2 s). The HXR emission lasts 4 times longer then the radio emission in the average. This work finds a close relationship between decimetric and HXR emission with sufficient statistics offering additional information on the flare process.     

Interplanetary baseline observations of type III solar radio bursts

Simultaneous observations of type III radio bursts from spacecraft separated by 0.43 AU have been made using the solar orbiters HELIOS-A and HELIOS-B. The burst beginning at 19:22 UT on March 28, 1976 has been located from the intersection of the source directions measured at each spacecraft, and from burst arrival time differences. The source positions range from 0.03 AU from the Sun at 3000 kHz to 0.08 AU at 585 kHz. The electron density along the burst trajectory, and the exciter velocity (=0.13c) were determined directly, without the need to assume a density model as has been done with single-spacecraft observations. The separation of HELIOS-A and -B has also provided the first measurements of burst directivity at low frequencies. For the March 28 burst the intensity observed from near the source longitude (HELIOS-B) was 3–10 dB greater than that from 60° west of the source (HELIOS-A).     

The third harmonic of type III solar radio bursts

The harmonic ratios of a large sample of inverted-U bursts are found to be smaller at the turning frequency than at the starting frequency. Ratios <2.0 are explained by postulating that the lowest fundamental frequencies emitted are prevented from escaping from the corona by an evanescent region between the source and the observer. This concept is used to construct a source model for inverted-U bursts where the density is lower inside a magnetic flux tube than it is outside.