Radio Sources and Scintillation

A review is given of the interplay between studies of compact radio sources and the scattering and scintillations that occur as the signals travel through the irregular refractive index of the interstellar and interplanetary plasmas. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Harmonics of Solar Radio Spikes at Metric Wavelengths

This paper presents the latest observations from the newly built solar radio spectrograph at the Chashan Solar Observatory. On July 18, 2016, the spectrograph records a solar spike burst event, which has several episodes showing harmonic structures, with the second, third, and fourth harmonics. The lower harmonic radio spike emissions are observed later than the higher harmonic bands, and the temporal delay of the second (third) harmonic relative to the fourth harmonic is about 30?–?40 (10) ms. Based on the electron cyclotron maser emission mechanism, we analyze possible causes of the temporal delay and further infer relevant coronal parameters, such as the magnetic field strength and the electron density at the radio source.     

Solar Decameter Spikes

We analyze and discuss the properties of decameter spikes observed in July?–?August 2002 by the UTR-2 radio telescope. These bursts have a short duration (about one second) and occur in a narrow frequency bandwidth (50?–?70 kHz). They are chaotically located in the dynamic spectrum. Decameter spikes are weak bursts: their fluxes do not exceed 200?–?300 s.f.u. An interesting feature of these spikes is the observed linear increase of the frequency bandwidth with frequency. This dependence can be explained in the framework of the plasma mechanism that causes the radio emission, taking into account that Langmuir waves are generated by fast electrons within a narrow angle θ≈13^°?–?18^° along the direction of the electron propagation. In the present article we consider the problem of the short lifetime of decameter spikes and discuss why electrons generate plasma waves in limited regions.     

发生在5月16日太阳耀斑中的微波射电尖峰辐射

对1991年5月16日发生在2.5GHz和2.6 GHz的射电尖峰辐射的持续时间,偏振和准周期振荡等特点作统计分析,详细报导了尖峰辐射的左旋偏振和右旋偏振在2.5,2.6GHz和3.1 GHz上的贡献.在这3个频率上,大量尖峰辐射不仅迭加在微波爆发的上升和极大相上.还迭加在微波爆发的下降相上.值得注意的是,在2.5 GHz和2.6 GHz处,也迭加在发生在主微波爆发后的小爆发上.尖峰辐射持续了17分钟.描述了发生在2.5GHz和2.6 GHz上尖峰辐射的不同时间尺度的偏振反转.统计分析表明在2.5 GHz以及2.6 GHz频率上的尖峰辐射的偏振反转有不同特点,在2.5 GHz频率上的尖峰辐射偏振反转比2.6 GH早1.5分钟,并且在2.5 GHz上尖峰辐射偏振方向反转更多.     

Millisecond Radio Spikes in the Decimetric Band

We present the results of the analysis of thirteen events consisting of dm-spikes observed in Toruń between 15 March 2000 and 30 October 2001. The events were obtained with a very high time resolution (80 microseconds) radio spectrograph in the 1352 – 1490 MHz range. These data were complemented with observations from the radio spectrograph at Ondřejov in the 0.8 – 2.0 GHz band. We evaluated the basic characteristics of the individual spikes (duration, spectral width, and frequency drifts), as well as their groups and chains, the location of their emission sources, and the temporal correlations of the emissions with various phases of the associated solar flares. We found that the mean duration and spectral width of the radio spikes are equal to 0.036 s and 9.96 MHz, respectively. Distributions of the duration and spectral widths of the spikes have positive skewness for all investigated events. Each spike shows positive or negative frequency drift. The mean negative and positive drifts of the investigated spikes are equal to −776 MHz s⁻¹ and 1608 MHz s⁻¹, respectively. The emission sources of the dm-spikes are located mainly at disk center. We have noticed two kinds of chains, with and without frequency drifts. The mean durations of the chains vary between 0.067 s and 0.509 s, while their spectral widths vary between 7.2 MHz and 17.25 MHz. The mean duration of an individual spike observed in a chain was equal to 0.03 s. While we found some agreement between the global characteristics of the groups of spikes recorded with the two instruments located in Toruń and Ondřejov, we did not find any one-to-one relation between individual spikes.     

Sources of the Multi-Lane Type II Solar Radio Burst on 5 November 2014

We report the well-observed event of a multi-lane type II solar radio burst with a combined analysis of radio dynamic spectra and radio and extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) imaging data. The burst is associated with an EUV wave driven by a coronal mass ejection (CME) that is accompanied by a GOES X-ray M7.9 flare on 5 November 2014. This type of event is rarely observed with such a complete data set. The type II burst presents three episodes (referred to as A, B, and C), characterized by a sudden change in spectral drift, and contains more than ten branches, including both harmonic-fundamental (H–F) pairs and split bands. The sources of the three episodes present a general outward propagating trend. There exists a significant morphology change from single source (Episode A) to double source (Episode B). Episode C maintains the double-source morphology at 150 MHz (no imaging data are available at a lower frequency). The double-source centroids are separated by \(\sim300 ^{\prime\prime}\) to \(500^{\prime\prime}\). The southeastern (SE) source is likely the continuation of the source of Episode A since both are at the same section of the shock (i.e. the EUV wave) and close to each other. The northwestern (NW) source is coincident with (thus, possibly originates from) the interaction of the shock with a nearby mini-streamer-like structure. Comparing the simultaneously observed sources of the F and H branches of Episode A, we find that their centroids are separated by less than \(200^{\prime \prime}\). The centroids of the split bands of Episode B are cospatial within the observational uncertainties. This study shows the source evolution of a multi-lane type II burst and the source locations of different lanes relative to each other and to the EUV wave generated by a CME. The study indicates the intrinsic complexity underlying a type II dynamic spectrum.     

一个复杂太阳射电爆发及其微波源区特征的初步研究

我国“太阳射电宽带频谱仪(0．7～7．6GHz)”于2001年10月19日观测到的复杂太阳射电大爆发，呈现许多有趣的特征。本文结合NoRH的高空分辨率成像观测资料，分析了该爆发的微波射电源区的演化特征及与射电辐射特征的关系。还发现微波源的缓慢运动，这可能与爆发所伴随的CME的形成有关。     

Long-Term Radio Scintillation Variations in the Circumsolar Plasma

Long-term scintillation measurements of the solar wind formation zone at solar elongations ranging from 1°–8° (Sun impact parameters: 4–30 R ) were recorded using the water maser source IRC-20431 at the wavelength =1.35 cm during its annual solar occultations in December 1981–1998. Dramatic changes in the spatial dependence of the scintillation index were recorded over the course of the 11-year solar cycle. Markedly diminished scattering, attributed to a pronounced heliolatitude effect, was observed at the closest solar approach distances in the years around solar activity minimum. From parallel investigations of the solar magnetic field structure it was determined that the field strength at the source of the solar wind streamlines is the governing factor for the solar wind acceleration process. Particularly apparent in the scintillation data during solar activity minimum is the increasing role of the polar coronal holes with their associated open magnetic field structure. The dependence of the solar scattering intensity on heliolatitude fades in the years of high solar activity as the level of scintillations increases at polar latitudes.     

Structure of Interplanetary Shock Waves from Radio Scintillation Data

The distributions of scintillation index in the interior region of an interplanetary shock wave are obtained by using scintillation observations from Pushchino, Russia. The dependence of scintillation index m on the distance from a shock front surface r is strong and can be represented by a two-component structure of distribution of turbulence level N_e)². The first component occupies a narrow layer with thickness of about 0.02 AU and size of about 0.3 AU, in which the relative enhancement of N_e is about 15. The second component occupies a layer with thickness r=0.1 AU and size of about 0.7 AU, in which the relative enhancement of N_e is about 2. The typical distance of the shock front from the Sun was on the order of 1 AU in the events that we investigated.     

Two-Station Interplanetary Scintillation Measurements of Solar Wind Speed near the Sun Using the X-band Radio Signal of the Nozomi Spacecraft

Interplanetary scintillation (IPS) measurements of the solar wind speed for the distance range between 13 and 37 R _S were carried out during the solar conjunction of the Nozomi spacecraft in 2000?–?2001 using the X-band radio signal. Two large-aperture antennas were employed in this study, and the baseline between the two antennas was several times longer than the Fresnel scale for the X-band. We successfully detected a positive correlation of IPS from the cross-correlation analysis of received signal data during ingress, and estimated the solar wind speed from the time lag corresponding to the maximum correlation by assuming that the solar wind flows radially. The speed estimates range between 200 and 540?km?s^?1 with the majority below 400?km?s^?1. We examined the radial variation in the solar wind speed along the same streamline by comparing the Nozomi data with data obtained at larger distances. Here, we used solar wind speed data taken from 327 MHz IPS observations of the Solar-Terrestrial Environment Laboratory (STEL), Nagoya University, and in?situ measurements by the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) for the comparison, and we considered the effect of the line-of-sight integration inherent to IPS observations for the comparison. As a result, Nozomi speed data were proven to belong to the slow component of the solar wind. Speed estimates within 30 R _S were found to be systematically slower by 10?–?15 % than the terminal speeds, suggesting that the slow solar wind is accelerated between 13 and 30 R _S.     

Comparative Solar Seeing and Scintillation Studies at the Fuxian Lake Solar Station

Starting November 1999 we are carrying out simultaneous seeing observations with the Solar Differential Image Motion Monitor (S-DIMM) at the Fuxian Lake station of the Yunnan Observatory and a solar scintillometer of the type used in the recent site survey by one of us (Beckers et al., 1997). The purpose was to compare the two methods of assessing the daytime atmospheric seeing for a lake site. We report here the first results of this comparison. We find that the relation between the seeing as measured by the S-DIMM (the Fried parameter r ₀) and the scintillation in the solar irradiance (_I) differs greatly from the relation found by Seykora (1993) for NSO/Sac Peak. We conclude that the _I measurements give a good indication for the amount of near-Earth seeing but that they are a poor proxy for the total atmospheric seeing. We interpret the simultaneous (r ₀, _I) observations in terms of an atmospheric seeing model and find good quantitative agreement with a model in which a fraction () of the seeing originated near the Earth (ground or water) and the rest (1–) originates at higher layers. For lake sites is small all day and the seeing is determined primarily by the refractive index variations at higher atmospheric layers. For land sites is small in the early morning but rapidly increases as the day progresses, near-Earth seeing dominating there most of the time.     

日食的射电观测(英)

日食为射电天文提供了一维高空间分辨率太阳射电观测机会．日食射电观测在太阳射电物理的发展上起过重要的作用．文中对日食射电观测的若干重要因素作了介绍和分析．日食射电观测在我国太阳射电天文发展上也起了重要作用．文中简要介绍了在我国组织观测的1958年、1968年、1980年及1987年的太阳射电日食观测及其主要结果．     

Synergy Between Radio and Optical Telescopes: Optical Followup of Extragalactic Radio Sources

Distance measurement is a must to characterize any source in the sky. In the radio band, it is rarely possible to get distance or redshift measurements. The optical band is the most used band to get distance estimate of sources, even for those originally discovered in other bands of the electromagnetic spectrum. However, the spectroscopic redshift measurements even for fairly bright radio sample is grossly incomplete, implying un-explored discovery space. Here we discuss the scope of optical follow up of radio sources, in particular the radio loud AGNs, from the present generation radio telescopes.     

Radio Emission from Masuda Sources

We note that different models, providing comparably good interpretation of the hard X-ray properties of so-called Masuda sources, can make distinctly different predictions for the radio emission produced at the Masuda source by the same population of accelerated electrons. Accordingly, we calculate the radio emission within a few competing models, i.e., those involving magnetic, turbulent, and collisional trapping of the fast electrons in the coronal source. We show that even available incomplete radio observations of the classical Masuda event and a Masuda-like event on 31 December 2007, recently reported by Krucker et al. (Astrophys. J. 714, 1108, 2010) are highly valuable in restricting the physical model of the source. Furthermore, our study proposes that combination of more complete high-resolution X-ray and radio observations can allow unambiguous distinction between the competing Masuda source models.     

An Investigation of Solar Maximum Metric Type ii Radio Bursts: do two Kinds of Coronal Shock Sources Exist?

A detailed statistical investigation of solar Type II radio bursts during the last solar maximum period 1999–2001 has been made to address the question if there exist two kinds of coronal shock sources. For this, the Type II bursts were classified into two classes: (i) those associated with flares only (Class I); and (ii) those associated with flares and CMEs (Class II) according to their temporal association. While the properties of all the type IIs agree in general with the common range of values, the properties of the shocks of the two classes differ slightly. For example, while the duration and shock speed for Class II are higher than those of Class I, the ending frequency for Class II is significantly lower. We have also examined in detail the physical association with other solar and interplanetary activities (Type IV bursts, Long Duration Events, Wind/WAVES deca-hectometric Type IIs, and interplanetary shocks) using the data in 2000. As a result, we have found noticeable differences between these two classes in terms of the following physical characteristics: First, the associations of these activities for Class II are much higher than those of Class I. Second, the correlation values between the flare parameters and the Type II properties for Class II are significantly smaller. Third, observed double Type IIs exist in only Class II events. The above results suggest that there are two kinds of coronal shocks or, rather, two general classes of coronal shock sources.     

周期性撕裂模的加速机制与射电尖峰的时间尺度

本文讨论了经典撕裂模理论的局限性,提出在考虑撕裂模的周期振荡后,其感应电场的大小及时空尺度均能满足太阳耀斑中的毫秒级射电尖峰所提供的高能粒子的信息,从而给耀斑粒子的一次加速提出了一种可能的机制。另一方面,撕裂模的周期与单个尖峰的宽度可对应,而撕裂模指数增长的特征时间又恰好与射电尖峰群的典型宽度具有同一量级,因此,快速尖峰辐射的时间结构很可能是由高能粒子流即加速电场本身的准周期性所决定。     

Long-term Periodicity Analysis of Polarization Variation for Radio Sources

We use the database of University of Michigan Radio Astronomy Observatory (UMRAO) at three radio bands (4.8, 8 and 14.5 GHz) to analyse the long-term polarization variation in search of the possible periodicity. Using the power spectral analysis method (PSA), the Jurkevich method and the discrete correlation function (DCF) method, we find that there are 16 sources lying in periodicity. The results show the astrophysically meaningful periodicity covering 2.1 years to 16.2 years at 4.8 GHz, 2.8 years to 16.3 years at 8 GHz, and 1.8 years to 16.6 years at 14.5 GHz.     

太阳分米波尖峰辐射最小带宽的探讨

云南天文台0.6～1.5GHz太阳射电快速动态频谱仪,在2001年6月24日的射电爆发中观测到大量尖峰。由于观测仪器有相当高的频率分辨率,使我们可以对尖峰的绝对带宽进行更精细的统计分析。由于尖峰数量很大,特别编制了识别尖峰并测量其带宽的软件来进行统计工作。结果发现76%的尖峰的绝对带宽达到仪器频率分辨率1.4MHz,其相对带宽达到0.1%。这比以前关于尖峰辐射带宽的统计结果要小很多。统计结果支持用ECM机制解释尖峰辐射。     

射电源的谱指数

文章研究了162个射电源,其中包括了47个BL Lacs ,21个galaxies ,94个平谱射电类星体( FSRQs ) ,这些源是通过Michigan大学的26m的射电望远镜观测的。大多数源都包含了3个波段的观测数据:4 .8GHz ,8GHz和14 .5GHz。文中计算了3个子类的平均的流量密度,并且得到了相应的谱指数(αwei) ,αBL=0 .08±0 .28 ,αGAL=-0 .91±0 .32 ,αFSRQ=-0 .14±0 .4。同时也讨论了这些源的射电性质,其中包含了谱指数,流量密度和红移之间的关系,流量密度和谱指数之间的关系。