太阳风中阿尔文波的研究进展

阿尔文波在太阳风中普遍存在,对其中等离子体的加热与加速有重要意义.从太阳风中的结构、太阳风湍流、太阳风全球模型、等离子体不稳定性(参量衰变不稳定性和火蛇管不稳定性)、太阳风的加热与加速等方面,总结了近年来太阳风中阿尔文波相关的研究进展.结合目前的研究趋势,从亚阿尔文速太阳风、太阳风全球模型和太阳源区3个方向展望了未来阿尔文波的相关研究.     

Heliolatitude and Time Variations of Solar Wind Structure from in situ Measurements and Interplanetary Scintillation Observations

The 3D structure of the solar wind and its evolution in time are needed for heliospheric modeling and interpretation of energetic neutral atoms observations. We present a model to retrieve the solar wind structure in heliolatitude and time using all available and complementary data sources. We determine the heliolatitude structure of solar wind speed on a yearly time grid over the past 1.5 solar cycles based on remote-sensing observations of interplanetary scintillations, in situ out-of-ecliptic measurements from Ulysses, and in situ in-ecliptic measurements from the OMNI 2 database. Since in situ out-of-ecliptic information on the solar wind density structure is not available apart from the Ulysses data, we derive correlation formulae between the solar wind speed and density and use the information on the solar wind speed from interplanetary scintillation observations to retrieve the 3D structure of the solar wind density. With the variations of solar wind density and speed in time and heliolatitude available, we calculate variations in solar wind flux, dynamic pressure, and charge-exchange rate in the approximation of stationary H atoms.     

Space-based measurements of elemental abundances and their relation to solar abundances

The solar wind provides a source of solar abundance data that only recently is being fully exploited. The Ion Composition Instrument (ICI) aboard the ISEE-3/ICE spacecraft was in the solar wind continuously from August 1978 to December 1982. The results have allowed us to establish long-term average solar wind abundance values for helium, oxygen, neon, silicon, and iron. The Charge-Energy-Mass (CHEM) instrument aboard the CCE spacecraft of the AMPTE mission has measured the abundance of these elements in the magnetosheath and has also added carbon, nitrogen, magnesium, and sulfur to the list. There is strong evidence that these magnetosheath abundances are representative of the solar wind. Other sources of solar wind abundances are Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) experiments and Apollo lunar foils. When comparing the abundances from all of these sources with photospheric abundances, it is clear that helium is depleted in the solar wind while silicon and iron are enhanced. Solar wind abundances for carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and neon correlate well with the photospheric values. The incorporation of minor ions into the solar wind appears to depend upon both the ionization times for the elements and the Coulomb drag exerted by the outflowing proton flux.     

The iron,silicon and oxygen abundance in the solar wind measured with SOHO/CELIAS/MTOF

From data collected with the MTOF sensor of the CELIAS instrument on board the SOHO spacecraft we derived the elemental abundance ratios for Si/O and Fe/O in the solar wind with high time resolution. Since Si and Fe are elements with a low first ionization potential (FIP) and oxygen is a high FIP element, these abundance ratios are valuable diagnostic tools for the study of the FIP fractionation process. The abundance ratios we find for slow and fast solar wind are commensurate with published values for interstream and coronal hole type solar wind. Between these two extreme cases of solar wind flow we find a continuous decrease of the abundance ratios for increasing solar wind speed, from a high value indicative of solar wind originating from the streamer belt to low values associated with flow from coronal holes.     

太阳风离子尺度湍流与太阳风加热

太阳风源自太阳大气,在行星际空间传播过程中被持续加热,然而究竟是何种能量加热了太阳风至今未研究清楚.太阳风普遍处于湍动状态,其湍动能量被认为是加热太阳风的重要能源.然而,太阳风湍流通过何种载体、基于何种微观物理机制加热了太阳风尚不明确,这是相关研究的关键问题.将回顾人类对太阳风加热问题的研究历史,着重介绍近年来我国学者在太阳风离子尺度湍流与加热方面取得的研究进展,展望未来在太阳风加热研究中有待解决的科学问题和可能的研究方向.     

Correcting for the solar wind in pulsar timing observations: the role of simultaneous and low-frequency observations

The primary goal of pulsar timing array projects is to detect ultra-low-frequency gravitational waves. Pulsar data sets are affected by numerous noise processes including varying dispersive delays in the interstellar medium and from the solar wind. The solar wind can lead to rapidly changing variations that, with existing telescopes, can be hard to measure and then remove. In this paper we study the possibility of using a low frequency telescope to aid in such correction for the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array(PPTA) and also discuss whether the ultra-wide-bandwidth receiver for the FAST telescope is sufficient to model solar wind variations. Our key result is that a single wide-bandwidth receiver can be used to model and remove the effect of the solar wind. However, for pulsars that pass close to the Sun such as PSR J1022+1022, the solar wind is so variable that observations at two telescopes separated by a day are insufficient to correct the solar wind effect.     

太阳风电子动力学不稳定性

电子是太阳风粒子中最为重要的组分之一,它可以通过多种机制对太阳风产生影响.太阳风中的电子通常具有温度各向异性和束流两种非热平衡分布特征,这些偏离热平衡分布的特征可以通过波粒相互作用激发电子不稳定性和等离子体波动,激发的等离子体波动又可以通过波粒相互作用调制太阳风粒子的分布,从而加热太阳风中的背景粒子.因此电子动力学不稳定性在太阳风的演化过程中扮演了极为重要的角色.详细介绍了太阳风中常见的电子动力学不稳定性,并基于等离子体动力论,详细介绍太阳风传播过程中所出现的各种不稳定性,尤其是在近日球层和太阳大气区域所出现的电子声热流不稳定性以及低混杂热流不稳定性,并分析其波粒相互作用机制,以便更加深入地研究太阳风传播过程中的电子分布函数演化.     

Temporal Evolution of the Solar Wind Bulk Velocity at Solar Minimum by Correlating the STEREO A and B PLASTIC Measurements

The two STEREO spacecraft with nearly identical instrumentation were launched near solar activity minimum and they separate by about 45° per year, providing a unique tool to study the temporal evolution of the solar wind. We analyze the solar wind bulk velocity measured by the two PLASTIC plasma instruments onboard the two STEREO spacecraft. During the first half year of our measurements (March?–?August 2007) we find the typical alternating slow and fast solar wind stream pattern expected at solar minimum. To evaluate the temporal evolution of the solar wind bulk velocity we exclude the spatial variations and calculate the correlation between the solar wind bulk velocity measured by the two spacecraft. We account for the different spacecraft positions in radial distance and longitude by calculating the corresponding time lag. After adjusting for this time lag we compare the solar wind bulk velocity measurements at the two spacecraft and calculate the correlation between the two time-shifted datasets. We show how this correlation decreases as the time difference between two corresponding measurements increases. As a result, the characteristic temporal changes in the solar wind bulk velocity can be inferred. The obtained correlation is 0.95 for a time lag of 0.5 days and 0.85 for 2 days.

     

The solar wind interaction with Venus through the eyes of the Pioneer Venus Orbiter

Venus has no internal magnetic dynamo and thus its ionosphere and hot oxygen exosphere dominate the interaction with the solar wind. The solar wind at 0.72 AU has a dynamic pressure that ranges from 4.5 nPa (at solar max) to 6.6 nPa (at solar min), and its flow past the planet produces a shock of typical magnetosonic Mach number 5 at the subsolar point. At solar maximum the pressure in the ionospheric plasma is sufficient to hold off the solar wind at an altitude of 400 km above the surface at the subsolar point, and 1000 km above the terminators. The deflection of the solar wind occurs through the formation of a magnetic barrier on the inner edge of the magnetosheath, or shocked solar wind. Under typical solar wind conditions the time scale for diffusion of the magnetic field into the ionosphere is so long that the ionosphere remains field free and the barrier deflects almost all the incoming solar wind. Any neutral atoms of the hot oxygen exosphere that reach the altitude of the magnetosheath are accelerated by the electric field of the flowing magnetized plasma and swept along cycloidal paths in the antisolar direction. This pickup process, while important for the loss of the Venus atmosphere, plays a minor role in the deceleration and deflection of the solar wind. Like at magnetized planets, the Venus shock and magnetosheath generate hot electrons and ions that flow back along magnetic field lines into the solar wind to form a foreshock. A magnetic tail is created by the magnetic flux that is slowed in the interaction and becomes mass-loaded with thermal ions.The structure of the ionosphere is very much dependent on solar activity and the dynamic pressure of the solar wind. At solar maximum under typical solar wind conditions, the ionosphere is unmagnetized except for the presence of thin magnetic flux ropes. The ionospheric plasma flows freely to the nightside forming a well-developed night ionosphere. When the solar wind pressure dominates over the ionospheric pressure the ionosphere becomes completely magnetized, the flow to the nightside diminishes, and the night ionosphere weakens. Even at solar maximum the night ionosphere has a very irregular density structure. The electromagnetic environment of Venus has not been well surveyed. At ELF and VLF frequencies there is noise generated in the foreshock and shock. At low altitude in the night ionosphere noise, presumably generated by lightning, can be detected. This paper reviews the plasma environment at Venus and the physics of the solar wind interaction on the threshold of a new series of Venus exploration missions.     

The Genesis solar wind sample return mission: Past,present, and future

The Genesis Discovery mission returned solar matter in the form of the solar wind with the goal of obtaining precise solar isotopic abundances (for the first time) and greatly improved elemental abundances. Measurements of the light noble gases in regime samples demonstrate that isotopes are fractionated in the solar wind relative to the solar photosphere. Theory is required for correction. Measurement of the solar wind O and N isotopes shows that these are very different from any inner solar system materials. The solar O isotopic composition is consistent with photochemical self‐shielding. For unknown reasons, the solar N isotopic composition is much lighter than essentially all other known solar system materials, except the atmosphere of Jupiter. Ne depth profiling on Genesis materials has demonstrated that Ne isotopic variations in lunar samples are due to isotopic fractionation during implantation without appealing to higher energy solar particles. Genesis provides a precise measurement of the isotopic differences of Ar between the solar wind and the terrestrial atmosphere. The Genesis isotopic compositions of Kr and Xe agree with data from lunar ilmenite separates, showing that lunar processes have not affected the ilmenite data and that solar wind composition has not changed on 100 Ma time scales. Relative to Genesis solar wind, ArKrXe in Q (the chondrite noble gas carrier) and the terrestrial atmosphere show relatively large light isotope depletions.     

Structure in the solar corona from radio scintillation measurements

Since the 1950s, a wide variety of radio observations based on scattering by electron density fluctuations in the solar wind has provided much of our information on density fluctuations and solar wind speed near the source region of the solar wind. This paper reviews recent progress in the understanding of the nature of these density fluctuations and their relationship to features on the Sun. The results include the first measurements of fine-scale structure within coronal streamers and evidence for structure in solar wind speed in the inner corona.     

Charge States of Krypton and Xenon in the Solar Wind

We calculate charge state distributions of Kr and Xe in a model for two different types of solar wind using the effective ionization and recombination rates provided from the OPEN_ADAS data base. The charge states of heavy elements in the solar wind are essential for estimating the efficiency of Coulomb drag in the inner corona. We find that xenon ions experience particularly low Coulomb drag from protons in the inner corona, comparable to the notoriously weak drag of protons on helium ions. It has been found long ago that helium in the solar wind can be strongly depleted near interplanetary current sheets, whereas coronal mass ejecta are sometimes strongly enriched in helium. We argue that if the extraordinary variability of the helium abundance in the solar wind is due to inefficient Coulomb drag, the xenon abundance must vary strongly. In fact, a secular decrease of the solar wind xenon abundance relative to the other heavier noble gases (Ne, Ar, Kr) has been postulated based on a comparison of noble gases in recently irradiated and ancient samples of ilmenite in the lunar regolith. We conclude that decreasing solar activity and decreasing frequency of coronal mass ejections over the solar lifetime might be responsible for a secularly decreasing abundance of xenon in the solar wind.     

Solar wind isotopic abundance ratios of ne,mg and si measured by SOHO/CELIAS/MTOF as diagnostic tool for the inner corona

Using the high-resolution mass spectrometer MTOF on board SOHO we have measured the solar wind isotopic abundance ratios of Ne, Mg, and Si in different solar wind regimes with bulk velocities ranging from 350 km/s to 650 km/s. Data indicate a systematic depletion of the heavier isotopes in the slow solar wind compared to their abundances in the fast solar wind from coronal holes. These variations in the solar wind isotopic composition represent a pure mass-dependent effect because the different isotopes of an element pass the inner corona with the same charge state distribution. The influence of particle mass on the acceleration of minor solar wind ions is discussed in the context of theoretical models and recent optical observations with other SOHO instruments.     

Multiparameter Computations of Solar Wind Characteristics in the Near-Earth Space from the Data on the Solar Magnetic Field

The solar wind parameters were analyzed using the concept which is being developed by the authors and assumes the existence of several systems of magnetic fields of different scales on the Sun. It was demonstrated that the simplest model with one source surface and a radial expansion does not describe the characteristics of the quiet solar wind adequately. Different magnetic field subsystems on the Sun affect the characteristics of the solar wind plasma in a different way, even changing the sign of correlation. New multiparameter schemes were developed to compute the velocity and the magnetic field components of the solar wind. The radial component of the magnetic field in the solar corona and the tilt of the heliospheric current sheet, which determines the degree of divergence of field lines in the heliosphere, were taken into account when calculating the magnetic field in the solar wind. Both the divergence of field lines in the corona and the strength of the solar magnetic field are allowed for in calculating the solar wind speed. The suggested schemes provide a considerably higher computation accuracy than that given by commonly used one-parameter models.     

On the correlation of coronal green-line intensity and solar wind velocity

Cross-correlation functions have been computed between green-line intensity (Kislovodsk) and Vela solar wind velocity January–June 1967. They are calculated separately for east and west limb observations in 5° latitude increments, and the solar wind velocites are correlated at their estimated emission times by correcting for the plasma Earth-Sun transit time using the observed velocities. The cross-correlation patterns appear to be dominated by two competing effects: a tendency of quasi-stationary green-line emission and solar wind velocity to anti-correlate; and a tendency of transient green-line emission and solar wind velocity enhancements to correlate positively. We also find evidence for simultaneous (same-day) emission brightenings over 2 to 4 limb quadrants. It is therefore recommended that, following a well-known practice in solar terrestrial studies, recurrent and transient events in both solar wind and green-line emissions should be studied separately.     

Magnetic fields and plasmas in the inner heliosphere: Helios results

The magnetic field of Mercury and the structure and dynamics of Mercury's magnetosphere, which will be studied by the spacecraft orbiting Mercury, are strongly influenced by the interaction of the solar wind with Mercury. In order to understand the internal magnetic field, it will be necessary to correct the observations of the external field for the distortions produced by the solar wind. Understanding of the solar wind interaction with Mercury is essential for understanding the structure and dynamics of the magnetosphere and phenomena such as magnetic storms. Helios 1 and 2 made a number of passes in the region traversed by the orbit of Mercury, and each pass provided a sample of the solar wind environment of Mercury. This paper reviews the plasma and magnetic field observations from Helios that provide a general basis for interpreting the observations of Mercury that will be made by orbiting spacecraft. The variables that govern the structure and dynamics of the magnetospheres of Mercury and Earth are approximately 5–10 times larger at Mercury than at Earth. Thus, the solar wind interaction with Mercury will be much stronger than the interaction with Earth. Moreover, the solar wind at Mercury is probably more variable than that at Earth. There is a clear need for measurements of the solar wind during the approach of spacecraft to Mercury and while they are in orbit around Mercury.     

Sun-Earth connection event of super geomagnetic storm on 2001 March 31:the importance of solar wind density

An X1.7 flare at 10:15 UT and a halo CME with a projected speed of 942 km s~(-1) erupted from NOAA solar active region 9393 located at N20 W19, which were observed on 2001 March 29. When the CME reached the Earth, it triggered a super geomagnetic storm(hereafter super storm). We find that the CME always moved towards the Earth according to the intensity-time profiles of protons with different energies. The solar wind parameters responsible for the main phase of the super storm occurred on 2001 March 31 are analyzed while taking into account the delayed geomagnetic effect of solar wind at the L1 point and using the SYM-H index. According to the variation properties of SYM-H index during the main phase of the super storm, the main phase of the super storm is divided into two parts. A comparative study of solar wind parameters responsible for two parts shows the evidence that the solar wind density plays a significant role in transferring solar wind energy into the magnetosphere, besides the southward magnetic field and solar wind speed.     

The influence of the anomalous cosmic-ray component on the dynamics of the solar wind

It is well known that both the galactic and anomalous cosmic rays show positive intensity gradients in the outer heliosphere which are connected with corresponding pressure gradients. Due to an efficient dynamical coupling between the solar wind plasma and these highly energetic media by means of convected MHD turbulences, there exists a mutual interaction between these media. As one consequence of this scenario the enforced pressure gradients influence the distant solar wind expansion. Here we concentrate in our theoretical study on the interaction of the solar wind only with the anomalous cosmic-ray component. We use the standard two-fluid model in which the cosmic-ray fluid modifies the solar wind flow via the cosmic-ray pressure gradient. Then we derive numerical solutions in the following steps: first we calculate an aspherical pressure distribution for the anomalous cosmic rays, describing their diffusion in an unperturbed radial solar wind. Second, we then consider the perturbation of the solar wind flow due to these induced anomalous cosmic-ray pressure gradients. Within this context we especially take account of the action of a non-spherical geometry of the heliospheric shock which may lead to pronounced upwinddownwind asymmetries in the pressures and thereby in the resulting solar wind flows. As we can show in our model, which fits the available observational data, radial decelerations of the distant solar wind by between 5 to 11% are to be expected, however, the deviations of the bulk solar wind flow from the radialdirections are only slightly pronounced.     

Solar Wind Sources in the Late Declining Phase of Cycle 23: Effects of the Weak Solar Polar Field on High Speed Streams

The declining phases of solar cycles are known for their high speed solar wind streams that dominate the geomagnetic responses during this period. Outstanding questions about these streams, which can provide the fastest winds of the solar cycle, concern their solar origins, persistence, and predictability. The declining phase of cycle 23 has lasted significantly longer than the corresponding phases of the previous two cycles. Solar magnetograph observations suggest that the solar polar magnetic field is also ～?2?–?3 times weaker. The launch of STEREO in late 2006 provided additional incentive to examine the origins of what is observed at 1 AU in the recent cycle, with the OMNI data base at the NSSDC available as an Earth/L1 baseline for comparisons. Here we focus on the year 2007 when the solar corona exhibited large, long-lived mid-to-low latitude coronal holes and polar hole extensions observed by both SOHO and STEREO imagers. STEREO provides in situ measurements consistent with rigidly corotating solar wind stream structure at up to ～?45° heliolongitude separation by late 2007. This stability justifies the use of magnetogram-based steady 3D solar wind models to map the observed high speed winds back to their coronal sources. We apply the WSA solar wind model currently running at the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center with the expectation that it should perform its best at this quiet time. The model comparisons confirm the origins of the observed high speed streams expected from the solar images, but also reveal uncertainties in the solar wind source mapping associated with this cycle’s weaker solar polar fields. Overall, the results illustrate the importance of having accurate polar fields in synoptic maps used in solar wind forecast models. At the most fundamental level, they demonstrate the control of the solar polar fields over the high speed wind sources, and thus one specific connection between the solar dynamo and the solar wind character.