Tracking of kilometric-wave type III solar bursts in elevation and elongation and apparent source sizes

With our experiment on the satellite IMP-6 (Explorer 43) we are able to track the position of type III solar bursts in elevation as well as elongation. We do this by measuring the correlations between signals on an electric dipole antenna which is approximately normal to the plane of the ecliptic, and either of two antennas rotating in the ecliptic plane. The result is that the sources are generally close to the ecliptic plane, close enough that their elevation above the ecliptic cannot account for the large apparent width which we and others observe, and that this width must therefore be real.     

Polarization measurements of solar type III radio bursts at 25.3 MHz

We report the results of 1966, 1968, and 1969 polarization measurements of solar type III radio noise bursts made by recording the output of two orthogonally polarized receiving channels and subsequent digital processing of selected data. The processed data yield total intensity, degree of polarization, ellipticity, and polarization ellipse orientation at 1 second intervals. The measurements are made in a 100 Hz bandwith to minimize the influence of the propagating medium on the measurements. The mean degree of polarization was found to be about 65% in contrast to previous studies which indicated that type III events were more weakly polarized. By assuming that type III bursts are flare related we study the polarization characteristics of type III bursts as a function of the solar longitude of the related flares. The relation between type III event polarization characteristics and flare importance is also investigated. The significance of polarization measurements in studies of solar radio events is pointed out and suggestions for further theoretical research are given.     

Direction-finding measurements of type III radio bursts out of the ecliptic plane

Direction-finding measurements with the plasma wave experiments on the HAWKEYE 1 and IMP 8 satellites are used to find the source locations of type III solar radio bursts in heliocentric latitude and longitude in a frequency range from 31.1 kHz to 500 kHz. IMP 8 has its spin axis perpendicular to the ecliptic plane; hence, by analyzing the spin modulation of the received signals the location of the type III burst projected into the ecliptic plane can be found. HAWKEYE 1 has its spin axis nearly parallel to the ecliptic plane; hence, the location of the source out of the ecliptic plane may also be determined. Using an empirical model for the emission frequency as a function of radial distance from the sun the three-dimensional trajectory of the type III radio source can be determined from direction-finding measurements at different frequencies. Since the electrons which produce these radio emissions follow the magnetic field lines from the Sun these measurements provide information on the three-dimensional structure of the magnetic field in the solar wind. The source locations projected into the ecliptic plane follow an Archimedean spiral. Perpendicular to the ecliptic plane the source locations usually follow a constant heliocentric latitude. When the best fit magnetic field line through the source locations is extrapolated back to the Sun this field line usually originates within a few degrees from the solar flare which produced the radio burst. With direction-finding measurements of this type it is also possible to determine the source size from the modulation factor of the received signals. For a type III event on June 8, 1974, the half angle source size was measured to be 60° at 500 kHz and 40° at 56.2 kHz as viewed from the Sun.Presented at Workshop on Mechanisms for Solar Type III Radio Bursts, Berkeley, California, May 8–9, 1975; see Solar Phys. 46, 433.     

Time profile of type III bursts

On the hypothesis that the time profile of a type III burst corresponds directly to the flux of electron beam, the similarity of time profile is shown to be maintained even if the electron velocity decreases with distance provided that the time is normalized to unity at the time of maximum flux. The observed time profiles of type III bursts with simple shape seem to follow the similarity law in almost all frequency range. This evidence may indicate that the time profile, both the rising and decaying phases, of a type III burst should be attributed to a common origin, e.g., the time variation of exciter determined by the initial velocity distribution in the electron beam, instead of attributing the rising time to the beam length and the decay time to the damping of plasma waves after the passage of the electron beam.     

Harmonic structure of type IIIb and III bursts

A decameter solar radio storm of type IIIb and III bursts has been analysed, using single frequency records at frequencies 12.5 and 25.0 MHz.Several kinds of burst associations are classified. As a result it is shown that in double oblique burst-traces of type IIIb + III on the frequency-time plane the type III burst is shifted by an octave above the type IIIb burst at any moment of the IIIb + III pair's lifetime. In particular, the harmonic structure of the spectrum is peculiar to the event of type IIIb + III in the initial and the final stages. This property of the pair is clear if the type IIIb and III radiations occur at the fundamental coronal plasma frequency and its harmonic respectively. On the other hand, if it is assumed that a type IIIb burst is the precursor of a type III one, there is no reason why the two bursts should be harmonically related.     

Pairs of non fundamental-harmonic type III bursts

Different forms of pairs of type III bursts have been discussed in the literature. We report here a new aspect revealed by high time resolution radioheliography. In some groups of these bursts, each element appears to be split into two components. These pairs recur with a characteristic time, and in a given group the time splitting of the two components of each pair is the same (one second or less). The nature of these pairs is discussed: the fundamental-harmonic hypothesis is excluded. Alternative interpretations are reviewed.     

The starting frequencies of type III bursts

During the period 1960 to 1966 the monthly averages of the starting frequencies of type III bursts declined with the level of solar activity and reached a minimum near the minimum of the solar cycle in 1964. The electron densities corresponding to the observed starting frequencies are close to those expected at the base of the K corona. It is shown that sufficient free-free absorption may occur in the corona above the appropriate plasma levels to account for the observed behavior of the starting frequencies of the bursts. The daily variation in the starting frequencies is attributed to structural variation of the inner corona. Quiescent prominences may be responsible for establishing periods of anomalously low-starting frequencies.     

Polarization of fundamental type III radio bursts

The fundamental of type III bursts is only partially polarized, yet all theory for emission near the plasma frequency predicts pure o-mode emission. I argue depolarization is inherent in the burst itself. The o-mode radiation is intensely scattered and mode-converted when it temporarily falls behind its own source and finds itself in the medium that is already disturbed by the electron beam. In particular, mode conversion is very efficient and yet causes only modest angular scattering at the height were _p + 0.5.The predicted minimum polarization nearly equals the polarization of the harmonic, as observed. Spike polarization is naturally explained by the earlier arrival of the scattered o-mode. Additional residual polarization depends on the refraction at the site of emission; larger beam velocities imply higher polarization, as observed, because a larger fraction of the radiation escapes without mode-conversion. The polarization at the frequencies where U-bursts reverse is of particular interest.Support is acknowledged from the NSF Solar-Terrestrial Research Program.     

Modeling of type III bursts dynamic spectra

The one-dimensional process of spatially limited electron stream propagation in the solar corona is simulated. It is shown that the beam instability development results either in strong relaxation in velocity space and inhibition of spatial diffusion (high-stream density) or in velocity space relaxation decrease and simultaneous growth of spatial stream length (low-stream density). Assuming a profile of background plasma density to be exponential, dynamic spectra of type III bursts are modeled, which shows that the emission source velocity is constant, and a duration of the burst emission at a given frequency reduces for high-stream densities.     

Observational characteristics of microwave type III bursts

The 266 type III bursts, observed with the 2.6–3.8 GHz high temporal resolution dynamic spectrometer of NAO during the 23rd solar cycle (from April 1998 to January 2003), are statistically analyzed. The parameters of these events, including the frequency drift, duration, polarization, bandwidth, starting and ending frequencies, are analyzed in details. The statistics on the starting and ending frequencies indicate that the starting frequency varies in a very large range from less than 2.6 GHz to greater than 3.8 GHz, while the ending frequency varies in a relatively narrow range from 2.82 GHz to 3.76 GHz. These phenomena imply that the heights where the electrons are accelerated are quite scattered, while the cutoff regions of the type III bursts are relatively restricted. The numbers of the bursts with the positive and negative drift rates are nearly equal, this may suggest that the accelerated electrons propagating upward and those propagating downward are equally proportioned in the observing frequency range. And the statistical results demonstrate that the microwave type III bursts are mainly caused by the plasma radiation and electron gyro-maser radiation.     

Relative timing of microwave bursts and metric type III bursts. Implication on the energy of type III burst exciter

The propagation speed of the exciter of solar type III bursts is derived from observations with high space and time resolution at 22 GHz and 169 MHz. A survey of an active region during two successive days revealed a high degree of association between microwave and type III bursts. From a detailed investigation of their location and timing, which requires neither a coronal density model nor the assumption of radial propagation, the exciter is found to propagate at a speed above at least 0.6c, i.e., much faster than the commonly cited value of c/3. Type III bursts in the dm-m wave band, hence, may reveal the energization of electrons up to energies far above 100 keV.     

Fundamental and harmonic radiation in solar type III bursts

There are three kinds of observations that provide indirect evidence for the contentions that (a) some type III radiation is fundamental radiation; and (b) type III's are at times emitted simultaneously as fundamental and second-harmonic plasma radiation.Presented by D. Melrose     

The necessity of fundamental emission in type III bursts

Observations of some type III radio bursts in the hectometer and kilometer wave range are compared with theoretical predictions. It is shown that the burst emission must be near the plasma frequency in the region between 10 R _⊙ and 50 R _⊙ in order to be consistent with the observed steep rise in brightness temperature for these bursts. The results of Fainberg, Malitson et al., and Haddock and Alvarez are discussed and compared with the interpretation of emission near the plasma frequency.     

The brightness temperatures of solar type III bursts

There is a characteristic maximum brightness temperature T _B 10¹⁵K for type III solar radio bursts in the solar wind. The suggestion is explored that the maximum observed values of T _Bmay be attributed to saturation of the processes involved in the plasma emission. The processes leading to fundamental and second harmonic emission saturate when T _Bis approximately equal to the effective temperature T _Lof the Langmuir waves. The expected maximum value of T _Bis estimated for this saturation model in two ways: from the growth rate for the beam instability, and from the maximum amplitude of the observed Langmuir turbulence. The agreement with the observed values is satisfactory in view of the uncertainties in the estimates (a) of the intrinsic brightness temperature from the observed brightness temperature, (b) of the actual growth rate of the beam instability, which must be driven by local, transient features (that are unobservable using available instruments) in the electron distribution, and (c) in the k-space volume filled by the Langmuir waves, and this is consistent with the observational data on two well-studied events at the orbit of the Earth and with statistical data for events over a range of radial distances from the Sun.     

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.     

Particle motions in coronal streamers and type III radio bursts

Both individual and collective motions of electron and proton streams in the current sheet which is thought to exist near the center of a coronal streamer are considered. Unlike previous analyses, closed field lines which must exist when finite conductivity is taken into account as well as a B _ø field due to solar rotation are present. It is shown on the basis of individual particle motions that neither electrons nor protons could move in most of the sheet in the manner required to explain type III bursts since they are effectively tied to the closed field lines.The possibility that the stream could collectively drag the closed field lines out with itself is considered. It is shown that impossibly high densities are required for electron streams and improbable densities for proton streams. Thus the particles responsible for type III bursts cannot travel in the densest part of a coronal streamer, but presumably travel close to this region. Moreover, the current sheet cannot act as a channeling agent to help explain the transverse coherency of type III burst sources.The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.     

Fundamental and harmonic radiation in type III solar radio bursts

Type III solar radio bursts are investigated by modelling the propagation of the electron beam and the generation and subsequent propagation of waves to the observer. Predictions from this model are compared in detail with particle, Langmuir wave, and radio data from the ISEE-3 spacecraft and with other observations to clarify the roles of fundamental and harmonic emission in type III radio bursts. Langmuir waves are seen only after the arrival of the beam, in accord with the standard theory. These waves persist after a positive beam slope is last resolved, implying that sporadic positive slopes persist for some time, unresolved but in accord with the predictions of stochastic growth theory. Local electromagnetic emission sets in only after Langmuir waves are seen, in accord with the standard theory, which relies on nonlinear processes involving Langmuir waves. In the events investigated here, fundamental radiation appears to dominate early in the event, followed and/or accompanied by harmonic radiation after the peak, with a long-lived tail of multiply scattered fundamental or harmonic emission extending long afterwards. These results are largely independent of, but generally consistent with, the conclusions of earlier works.     

Solar radio type III bursts and coronal density structures

The comparison of solar radio type III bursts measured at 169 MHz with K corona observations leads to the conclusion that about 75% of the active regions over which type III bursts occur are associated with low density coronal structures. The comparison with X-ray maps of the solar disk shows that all these regions are located in low intensity regions.It is concluded that the idea generally accepted that the type III bursts are associated with dense coronal structures and travel in these structures is not at all proven for a large number of cases.