Mgix emission lines in an active region spectrum obtained with the Solar EUV Rocket Telescope and Spectrograph (SERTS)

Theoretical electron-temperature-sensitive Mgix emission line ratios are presented forR _I =I(443.96 )/I(368.06 ),R ₂ =I(439.17 )/I(368.06 ),R ₃ =I(443.37 )/I(368.06 ),R ₄ =I(441.22 )/I(368.06 ), andR ₅ =I(448.28 )/I(368.06 ). A comparison of these with observational data for a solar active region, obtained during a rocket flight by the Solar EUV Rocket Telescope and Spectrograph (SERTS), reveals excellent agreement between theory and observation forR ₁ throughR ₄, with discrepancies that average only 9%. This provides experimental support for the accuracy of the atomic data adopted in the line ratio calculations, and also resolves discrepancies found previously when the theoretical results were compared with solar data from the S082A instrument on boardSkylab. However in the case ofR ₅, the theoretical and observed ratios differ by almost a factor of 2. This may be due to the measured intensity of the 448.28 line being seriously affected by instrumental effects, as it lies very close to the long wavelength edge of the SERTS spectral coverage (235.46–448.76 ).     

Ca X line ratios in solar flares

Theoretical Ca X electron temperature sensitive emission line ratios, derived using electron excitation rates interpolated from accurateR-matrix calculations, are presented forR ₁ =I(419.74 )/I(574.02 ,),R ₂ =I(411.65 )/I(574.02 ),R ₃ =I(419.74 )/I(557.75 ), andR ₄ =I(411.65 )/I(557.75 ). A comparison of these with observational data for three solar flares, obtained by the Naval Research Laboratory's S082A slitless spectrograph on boardSkylab, reveals good agreement between theory and observation forR ₁ andR ₃ in one event, which provides limited support for the accuracy of the atomic data adopted in the analysis. However, in the other flares the observed values ofR ₁ –R ₄ are much larger than the theoretical high-temperature limits, which is probably due to blending of the 419.74 line with Civ 419.71 , and 411.65 with possibly Ciii 411.70 .     

Correlation of He II lyman alpha with He I 10830 Å, and with chromospheric and EUV coronal emission

This paper describes the results of comparing SERTS-3 images obtained in the transition region line of Heii 304 with chromospheric Hei 10830 absorption, with strong coronal lines of Mgix 368 , Fexv 284 and 417 , and Fexvi 335 and 31 , with H, with Caii 8542 , and with magnetograms in Fei 8688H. All of the images are illustrated, and the image reconstruction techniques used are described and evaluated. The high correlation of the Heii 304 and Hei 10830 images, originally found by Harvey and Sheeley (1977), is confirmed and is put on a quantitative basis. We find that the supergranulation network has greater contrast, and that filaments appear darker, in 10830 than in 304 . In active regions, the 304 line follows more closely the behavior of H and Caii 8542 than the 10830 line.     

AIix emission line ratios in solar flares observed with the S082A spectrograph on board Skylab

Theoretical electron-density-sensitive emission line ratios in B-like AIix are presented forR =I(385.01 )/I(392.42 ). A comparison of these with high spectral resolution solar flare data, obtained with the S082A slitless spectrograph on boardSkylab, reveals agreement between theory and observation for those spectra that were observed during the later stages of the flares. These results provide experimental support for the accuracy of the line-ratio calculations, and also resolves discrepancies found previously when the theoretical results were compared with solar observations from the S-055 instrument on boardSkylab. However, the agreement between theory and observation for a spectrum obtained during the early stages of a flare is very poor, which probably indicates that the 392.42 line is blended with a transition arising from a species formed at a very high electron temperature.     

Universal birefringent filter with a new double passband mode

This article describes the universal birefringent filter (UBF) which will be mounted at Taiwan. The UBF permits observations of solar images, vector magnetic fields and/or line-of-sight velocity fields in any Fraunhofer line in the wavelength region from 4000 to 7000 with half width from 0.05 to 0.14 . We have tested it at ten Fraunhofer lines under a spectral telescope in Huairou Station of Beijing Astronomical Observatory and obtained the passband profiles. The principles of magnetic field and velocity field measurement with the UBF are also described.     

EIT: Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope for the SOHO mission

The Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT) will provide wide-field images of the corona and transition region on the solar disc and up to 1.5 R above the solar limb. Its normal incidence multilayer-coated optics will select spectral emission lines from Fe IX (171 ), Fe XII (195 ), Fe XV (284 ), and He II (304 ) to provide sensitive temperature diagnostics in the range from 6 × 10⁴ K to 3 × 10⁶ K. The telescope has a 45 x 45 arcmin field of view and 2.6 arcsec pixels which will provide approximately 5-arcsec spatial resolution. The EIT will probe the coronal plasma on a global scale, as well as the underlying cooler and turbulent atmosphere, providing the basis for comparative analyses with observations from both the ground and other SOHO instruments. This paper presents details of the EIT instrumentation, its performance and operating modes.     

Solar chromospheric magnetic fields in active regions inferred by monochromatic images of the Stokes' parameterV of the Hβ line

A series of H chromospheric magnetograms was obtained at various wavelengths near the line center with the vector video magnetograph at Huairou Solar Observing Station as a diagnostic of chromospheric magnetic structures. The two-dimensional distribution of the circular polarization light of the H line with its blended lines at various wavelength in active regions was obtained, which consists of the analyses of Stokes' profileV of this line. Due to the disturbance of the photospheric blended line Fei 4860.98 for the measurement of the chromospheric magnetic field, a reversal in the chromospheric magnetograms relative to the photospheric ones occurs in the sunspot umbrae. But in the quiet, plage regions, even penumbrae, the influence of the photospheric blended Fei 4860.98 line is not obvious. As regards the observation of the H chromospheric magnetograms, we can select the working wavelength between -0.20 and -0.24 from the line core of H to avoid the wavelengths of the photospheric blended lines in the wing of H.After the spectral analysis of chromospheric magnetograms, we conclude that the distribution of the chromospheric magnetic field is similar to the photospheric field, especially in the umbrae of the sunspots. The chromospheric magnetic field is the result of the extension of the photospheric field.     

Coronal environment of quiescent prominences

With thespectro-coronagraph and themultichannel subtractive double pass spectrograph (MSDP) at the Pic du Midi Observatory two quiescent prominences were observed simultaneously. From the spectro-coronagraph observations 2D maps of Hei 10830 , Fexiii 10798 and 10747 line intensities were obtained. In addition, we obtained 2D maps of the ratioR of the two iron lines. This ratio is used as a diagnostic for determining the density of the hot coronal plasma surrounding prominences. We found that the electron density is higher at the location of the prominences than in the corona, whereas small regions (40) of lower electron density are unevenly distributed around the prominences indicating that the surrounding corona is highly inhomogeneous. The density of the cavity is reduced by a factor 1.5 compared to the density of the prominence environment (5 × 10⁸ cm^–3). We discuss the existence of cavities around these prominences according to the orientation of their axes relative to the line of sight and according to the velocity field inside the prominences. Constraints on models for prominence formation are derived.     

Ultraviolet solar spectrum recorded by echelle spectrograph (1970 to 1800 Å)

Six spectrograms of the solar spectrum were obtained in the region from 1970 to 1800 at a resolution of approximately 2 × 10⁵ with a rocket-borne spectrograph using an echelle as the principal dispersing element. Reduction of data obtained has been completed in the region from 1946.5 to 1963.5 , in which 79 absorption features are measured and 33 identified. Most of the identified stronger lines are due to Fei. A significant feature of the solar spectrum in this region coincides with the raie ultime of Sei.     

Space-time profile variations of some spectral lines and their influence upon doppler velocity measurements

A technique for high-sensitivity measurements of spectral line profile fluctuations is suggested. Observations with spectral lines most commonly used to study the oscillations have been carried out. It is found that 5-min and 3-min fluctuations of Fei 5123, 5250, 5434 and NaDi 5896 line profiles are able to produce signals equivalent to line-of-sight velocities of 1–5 m s^–1 at a spatial resolution of 5 and 10–35 m s^–1 at 1.5 × 4 resolution. Such observations permit a better understanding of the particular physical factors responsible for the oscillations of line-of-sight velocity signals and the magnetic field which are the subject of study of helioseismology.     

Anisotropic angular broadening in the solar wind

We present Very Large Array observations at wavelengths of 2, 3.5, 6, and 20 cm, of angular broadening of radio sources due to the solar wind in the region 2–16 solar radii. Angular broadening is anisotropic with axial ratios in the range 2–16. Larger axial ratios are observed preferentially at smaller solar distances. Assuming that anisotropy is due to scattering blobs elongated along magnetic field lines, the distribution of position angles of the elliptically broadened images indicates that the field lines are non-radial even at the largest heliocentric distances observed here. At 5R , the major axis scattering angle is 0.7 at =6 cm and it varies with heliocentric distance asR ^–1.6. The level of turbulence, characterized by the wave structure function at a scale of 10 km along the major axis, normalized to =20 cm, has a value 20±7 at 5R and varies with heliocentric distance asR ^–3. Comprison with earlier results suggest that the level of turbulence is higher during solar maximum. Assuming a power-law spectrum of electron density fluctuations, the fitted spectral exponents have values in the range 2.8–3.4 for scales sizes between 2–35 km. The data suggests temporal fluctuations (of up to 10%) in the spectral exponent on a time scale of a few tens of minutes. The observed structure functions at different solar distances do not show any evidence for an inner scale; the upper limits are 1 km at 2R and 4 km at 13R . These upper limits are in conflict with earlier determinations and may suggest a reduced inner scale during solar maximum.     

A two-dimensional multi-band spectroheliograph

The present paper describes a two-dimensional multi-band spectrograph which is located at Yunnan Observatory (25° N 103° E), Kunming. The instrument consists of a coelostat system with an aperture of 40 cm, and spatial resolution better than 1 under excellent seeing, and a spectrograph equipped with a plane reflecting grating. It can simultaneously obtain spectral data in ten bands, including the Balmer lines, metallic lines [Fei 6173 ,D _{1, 2, 3}, Mg, and Caii (H + K)] and Heii 4686 . We are able to control the observational processes by means of a computer and obtain the following data synchronously or quasi-synchronously: multi-band spectra, H filtergrams, magnetic field, and white light. With the aid of H slit-jaw filtergrams, we can determine where and when the spectral data are obtained and, on the basis of analysing the spectral line profiles, we can understand the physical characteristics of an active region and derive the fields of physical parameters. For the line-of-sight velocities, the values measured are as high as hundreds of kilometers per second and as low as a few kilometers per second.     

Late-time emission of the type II Supernovae powered by the radioactive decay56Ni−56Co−56Fe

A one-zone model for the late time SN II energized by the radioactive decay⁵⁶Ni–⁵⁶Co–⁵⁶Fe is presented. The model succeeds in reproducing for the late time evolution of H and [Oi] 6300 emission lines in SN1970g for the reasonable set of parameters: mass of ejecta 4M , boundary velocityv ₀=4000 km s^–1 and amount of⁵⁶NiM _Ni=0.02M . However, a one-zone model does not account for the late time continuum. In the case of SN1980k the radioactive model fits H and [Oi] 6300 emissions att250 day satisfactory but fails at very late time, e.g.,t=670 day when the predicted value of the ratioL(H)/L(6300) is two orders of magnitude smaller than the observed one. We suggest that the strong H emission in SN1980k on the 670th day is due to the interaction of the supernova envelope with the pre-SN wind. The radioactive model for the late time SN II predicts strong Mgii 2800 line and detectable Hei 10830 line in emission and absorption.     

On gravitational orbits and the virial theorem

We emphasize the sharp distinctions between different one-body gravitational trajectories made by the ratio of time averagesR(t)–E _kin/E _pot.R is calculated as a function of the eccentricity (e) and of the energy (E). Whent, independently ofe andE, R1/2 for closed orbits (this clearly illustrates the fulfillment of the virial theorem in classical mechanics); whereasR1, at any time, for open orbits.     

Photometry of the Supernova SN 2002ap in M 74 during 2002

UBVR _c I _c observations of SN 2002ap during February, October, and November 2002 at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory are reported. An examination of our photometric data, along with published data, shows that over a period of about a year from the day the SN 2002ap supernova burst, the light curve passed through three developmental stages: a sharp rise, followed by a stage of rapid exponential decrease, and then a slower fading. Based on the shape of the light curve, this supernova is of type SN I, but according to the variation in its color indices, it more likely belongs to the SN Ic supernovae. In the premaximum stage, the energy distribution from 3000 to 6000 resembles the emission from a star of spectral class F5V. In the second stage of the light curve evolution, when the brightness falls off rapidly, the changes in the color indices are associated with a change in the radiation temperature indicative of rapid cooling of the ejected material. Taking the effective radiation temperature in the premaximum stage to be T _eff 6500 K, we estimate the expansion velocity of the quasiphotosphere to be about 9700 km/s.     

Coronal heating and chromospheric energy density: An observational association

The time-averaged equivalent width of the HeI 10830 line is seen to be correlated with the time-averaged line width. This correlation is interpreted as evidence for the association of the chromospheric energy density with the heating of the overlying corona.     

Observations of stray-light and sunspot intensities during the Mercury transit of 1970 May 9

In order to test the usual method for correcting sunspot intensity measurements for stray light, we have measured, during the Mercury transit of 1970 May 9, the intensities of Mercury, a sunspot umbra, and the aureole. The direct observations result in Mercury intensities < 0.06 I and aureole intensities <0.01 I . The stray light correction to the spot intensities has been <(0.03 ± 0.01) I . The main contribution to the stray light on the solar disc is shown to be produced by a spread-function with a half width of 10 arc sec. Consequently, for stray light corrections the range R R + + 20 in the aureole has to be measured very precisely; furthermore, a remarkable fraction of the stray light in the center of an umbra originates from the surrounding penumbra.Mitteilungen aus dem Fraunhofer Institut, Nr. 102.     

Observational study of the ‘post’-flare loops on June 4, 1991

A limb, two-ribbon H flare on June 4, 1991, associated with a white-light flare and followed by an emission spray and post-flare loops, is studied. A region of rapidly enhanced brightness at the bottom of the H ribbon above the white-light flare is revealed. The energy released by the white-light flare at _eff = 4100 is estimated to be about 1.5 × 10²⁸ erg s^–1.     

On the pulsation amplitude of cepheid variables

On the basis of more abundant data a relation logPV/logR for cepheid variables (Fernie, 1965) is constructed. A linear relation between logP V and logR for classical cepheids is found, which perhaps has a break at R=10R . On the logR/logP diagram thes-cepheids (Efremov, 1968) show a distinct sequence. Alls-cepheids present a relative variation of the radii R/R0.075. The existence of non-s-cepheids with R/R0.075 raises a point about the evolutionary place of these stars (see Efremov, 1968). One could suppose that cepheids with logP>1.1 pulsate in the first overtone.     

Stability of outer planetary orbits around binary stars: A comparison of Hill's and Laplace's stability criteria

A comparison is made between the stability criteria of Hill and that of Laplace to determine the stability of outer planetary orbits encircling binary stars. The restricted, analytically determined results of Hill's method by Szebehely and co-workers and the general, numerically integrated results of Laplace's method by Graziani and Black are compared for varying values of the mass parameter =m ₂/(m ₁+m ₂). For 00.15, the closest orbit (lower limit of radius) an outer planet in a binary system can have and still remain stable is determined by Hill's stability criterion. For >0.15, the critical radius is determined by Laplace's stability criterion. It appears that the Graziani-Black stability criterion describes the critical orbit within a few percent for all values of .