Two Unusual Episodes of ≈ 13-Day Variations

Fourier analysis (DFT/CLEAN) of the international sunspot number (R) series since 1932 has revealed two long (250–500 days) and distinct episodes of solar activity exhibiting persistent 13 -day variations. The first episode lasts 500 days near the maximum of solar cycle 20, and the second, 250 days near the end of the current solar cycle 22. The solar radio flux density (F _{10_7cm}) series since 1947 has also been analyzed. During the first episode both solar indices exhibit distinct 27- and 13-day variations (the first report of 13-day variations in F _{10_7cm}). During the second episode neither index exhibits distinct 27-day variations and only R exhibits 13-day variations. Conditions affecting the appearance of 13-day variations in F _{10_7cm} are discussed.     

Directional discontinuities in the interplanetary magnetic field

It is shown that the interplanetary magnetic field has different characteristics on different scales, and it is noted that a given physical theory may not be applicable or relevant on all scales. Four scales are defined in terms of time intervals on which the data may be viewed. Many discontinuities in the magnetic-field direction are seen on the mesoscale ( 4 days, 1 AU). The characteristics of such directional discontinuities which were observed by Pioneer 6 during the period December 16, 1965-January 4, 1966 are presented, with special emphasis on their distribution in time. Previously, it was suggested that such discontinuities are simply boundaries of spaghetti-like filaments extending from the sun to the earth. Here it is shown that on the mesoscale unique filaments with sharp boundaries containing well-ordered magnetic fields are not always seen although discontinuities are always present at 1 AU. Thus, the interplanetary medium appears to be discontinuous rather than filamentary. The filamentary model implies that discontinuities originate at the sun and are convected with the solar wind. The discontinuous model allows the additional possibility that the discontinuities form in the interplanetary medium far from the sun.     

Quasi-stationary solar wind in ray structures of the streamer belt

It is shown on the basis of analyzing the LASCO/SOHO data that the main quasi-stationary solar wind (SW), with a typical lifetime of up to 10 days, flows in the rays of the streamer belt. Depending on R, its velocity increases gradually from V3 km s^–1 at R1.3 R to V170 km s^–1 at R15 R . We have detected and investigated the movement of the leading edge of the main solar wind at the stage when it occupied the ray, i.e., at the formative stage of a quasi-stationary plasma flow in the ray. It is shown that the width of the leading edge of the main SW increases almost linearly with its distance from the Sun. It is further shown that the initial velocity of the inhomogeneities (`blobs') that travel in the streamer belt rays increases with the distance from the Sun at which they originate, and is approximately equal to the velocity of the main solar wind which carries them away. The characteristic width of the leading edge of the `blob' R , and remains almost unchanging as it moves away from the Sun. Estimates indicate that the main SW in the brightest rays of the streamer belt to within distances at least of order R3 R represents a flow of collisional magnetized plasma along a radial magnetic field.     

The Coronal Mass Ejection Waiting-Time Distribution

The distribution of times t between coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in the Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) CME catalog for the years 1996–2001 is examined. The distribution exhibits a power-law tail (t) with an index –2.36±0.11 for large waiting times (t>10 hours). The power-law index of the waiting-time distribution varies with the solar cycle: for the years 1996–1998 (a period of low activity), the power-law index is –1.86±0.14, and for the years 1999–2001 (a period of higher activity), the index is –2.98±0.20. The observed CME waiting-time distribution, and its variation with the cycle, may be understood in terms of CMEs occurring as a time-dependent Poisson process. The CME waiting-time distribution is compared with that for greater than C1 class solar flares in the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) catalog for the same years. The flare and CME waiting-time distributions exhibit power-law tails with very similar indices and time variation.     

Sharp edges in solar microwave spectra: Neutral current sheets or cyclotron lines?

We have mapped two solar active regions using the VLA at three closely spaced frequencies (4496, 4716, and 4996 MHz) in an attempt to determine the origin of the steep spectra (index –5 to –8) sometimes observed with large single telescopes. One of the regions observed indeed shows an anomalously large slope ( –6) compared to the usual ( –2 to –2.5). The other region shows a similar slope ( –5) but with a larger range of statistical error. Two possible explanations for such steep edges in solar spectra are (1) transmission effects of neutral current sheets, and (2) the appearance of cyclotron lines. The internal evidence of the microwave maps and simultaneous optical observations favor an explanation in terms of cyclotron lines.On leave from Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore, India.     

The dynamics of the Orion Nebula

A model is constructed of a spherically symmetric self-gravitating condensation of neutral hydrogen immersed in anHii region. The structure of the condensation is represented by the isothermal gas sphere at a temperature of 100°K. Typical parameters of such a condensation compatible with the estimated ultra-violet radiation field in the central regions of the Orion Nebula are, mass 1M ; radius 10¹⁶ cm; mean density 10^–15 gm cm^–3. The condensations are not static configurations but evolve because of mass loss by ionization from their surfaces. Perhaps 5% become gravitationally unstable and collapse. The remainder act as sources of ionized gas which flows into the surrounding nebula.     

Observations of energetic X-rays and solar cosmic rays associated with the 23 May 1967 solar flare event

On 23 May 1967 energetic (10–50 keV) solar flare X-rays were observed by the OGO-III ion chamber during the period 1808–2100 UT. The time-intensity profile for the X-ray event showed three distinct peaks at 1810, 1841 and 1942 UT. The second peak, which is equivalent to 2.9 × 10^–3 ergs cm^–2sec^–1 above 20 keV, is the largest X-ray burst observed so far by the OGO-I and OGO-III ion chambers. The soft (2–12 Å) X-ray observations reported by Van Allen (1968) also show similar peaks, roughly proportional in magnitude to the energetic X-ray peaks. However, the intensity of energetic X-rays peaked in each case 5–10 min earlier than the soft X-ray intensity indicating a relatively hard photon energy spectrum near the peak of the energetic X-ray emission. The corresponding time-intensity profile for the solar radio emission also showed three peaks in the microwave region nearly coincident with the energetic X-ray peaks. The third radio peak was relatively rich in the metric emission. Beyond this peak both the energetic X-rays and the microwave emission decayed with a time constant of 8 min while the corresponding time constant for the soft X-rays was 43 min. In view of the earlier findings about the energetic X-rays it is indicated that the 23 May solar X-ray event was similar to those observed earlier. During the 23 May event the integral energy flux spectrum at the time of peak intensity is found to be consistent with the form e ^–E/E ₀, E ₀ being about 3.4 and 3.7 keV for the peaks at 1841 and 1942 UT, respectively. Assumption of a similar spectrum during the decay phase indicates that the spectral index E ₀ decreased nearly exponentially with time.The OGO-III ion chamber, which is also sensitive to protons 12 MeV, observed a solar particle event starting at 2100 UT on 23 May. It could not be determined uniquely which of the two principal X-ray peaks was associated with the particle event, and in fact both may have contributed. The particle intensity reached its maximum value at 1003 UT on 25 May 1967. The equivalent peak radiation dosage was 24 R/hour behind the 0.22 g cm^–2 thick aluminum wall of the chamber. This peak radiation dosage was considerably smaller than the maximum dosage (60 R/hour) during the 2 September 1966 solar particle event, the largest event observed so far by the OGO-I and OGO-III satellites. The temporal relationship between the solar X-ray and particle events on 23 May 1967 was similar to that observed in the solar flare events on 7 July 1966, 28 August 1966 and 27 February 1967.     

A sky-noise measurement and its implication for ground-based infrared astronomy in the 10μm atmospheric window

A spectral analysis of the fluctuations of the infrared sky radiance at 10m was made at the ESO-site of La Silla in Northern Chile. The data are compared to literature. The consequences of the results on infrared observing for future large telescopes are discussed: our data suggest that in order to achieve background noise limited performance in the 10m atmospheric window chopping with frequencies of 8 Hz and amplitudes of 10 arcsec is mandatory.based on observations obtained at the European Southern Observatory, La Silla, Chile     

Lunar properties from transient and steady magnetic field measurements

The electrical conductivity of the lunar interior has been determined from magnetic field step transients measured on the lunar dark side. The simplest model which best fits the data is a spherically symmetric three layer model having a nonconducting outer crust of radial thickness 0.03R _moon; an intermediate layer of thicknessR0.37R _moon, with electrical conductivity ₁ 3.5 × 10^–4 mhos/m; and an inner core of radiusR ₂ 0.6R _m with conductivity ₂ 10^–2 mhos/m. Temperatures calculated from these conductivities in the three regions for an example of an olivine Moon are as follows: crust, < 440 K; intermediate layer, 890 K; and core, 1240 K. The whole-moon relative permeability has been calculated from the measurements to be/ ₀ = 1.03 ± 0.13. Remanent magnetic fields at the landing sites are 38 ± 3 at Apollo 12, 43 ± 6 and 103 ± 5 at two Apollo 14 sites separated by 1.1 km, and 6 ± 4 at the Apollo 15 site. Measurements show that the 38 remanent field at the Apollo 12 site is compressed to 54 by a solar wind pressure increase of 7 × 10^–8 dynes/cm².National Research Council Postdoctoral Associate.     

Effects of the Sector Structure of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field on Galactic Cosmic Ray Anisotropy

We study the effects of the sector structure of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) on the Galactic cosmic ray (GCR) anisotropy at solar minimum by using Global Network neutron monitor data. The hourly neutron monitor data for 1976 were averaged for the positive (+) and negative (–) IMF sectors (+ and – correspond to the antisolar and solar directions of magnetic field lines, respectively) and then processed by the global survey method. We found that the magnitude of the GCR anisotropy vector is larger in the positive IMF sector and that the phase shifts toward early hours. The derived GCR components A _r, A , and A for the different + and – sectors are then used to calculate the angle ( 46°) between the IMF lines and the Sun–Earth line, the solar wind velocity U ( 420 km/s), the ratio of the perpendicular (K ) and parallel (K _||) diffusion coefficients K /K _|| = ( 0.33), and other parameters that characterize the GCR modulation in interplanetary space.     

Erratum: the 2.27 day period of WR-134 (HD 191765)

The original temporal analysis of a 12 night spectral timeseries of WR-134 has been found to be flawed and a re-analysis shows that the line profile variations are indeed periodic. When combined with a 4 night timeseries taken 45 days earlier, a period near 2.27 d is found in periodograms of the Heii 5412 line centroid,rms line width, and line skew variations. When the emission line residuals are ordered as a function of phase, a sinuous feature appears to snake about the line center with an amplitude of ± 500 km s^–1. This is 20 larger than the line centroid amplitude; the calculation of which is heavily weighted by static portions of the line profile. In addition to the snake, emission residuals appear that move away from line center on unbound trajectories and are thought to result from the interaction of a periodic driver with the unstable flow of the radiation driven wind. The nature of the periodic driver is a topic for discussion.     

Study of alpha component dynamics in the solar wind using the Prognoz satellite

The analysis of solar wind He⁺⁺ and H⁺ ion distribution functions, collected over five months by the satellite Prognoz 1, shows that these are in general maxwellian but that often tails appear at higher speeds. The existing relation V-T, the observation of ratios of T/Tp 3.83 and V/Vp 1.035 give evidence of preferential He⁺⁺ ion heating and acceleration. The criteria for heating by dissipation of hydromagnetic waves proposed by Barnes and Hung (1973) are tested experimentally. Finally, multifluid models are likely to predict certain observations such as dependence of the velocity ratio V/Vp on the solar wind flux.     

On the relative roles of unipolar and mixed-polarity fields

Away from plages, solar magnetic fields may be classified as unipolar or as of mixed polarity, though the distinction is strictly arbitrary. The dividing line used here is 0.4 ¦B _minor/B _major¦ 1, where average fields of major and minor polarities are measured over large areas. Some of their statistical properties and cyclical variations are detailed. In unipolar regions, 3 B _major 50 G, B _minor 0.1 B _major, and ¦B¦ 1.1 B _major. In regions of mixed polarity, 3.5 ¦B¦ 10 G.Below latitudes of ± 60°, mixed polarities predominate for about 5 yr around sunspot minimum. For several years around sunspot maximum, unipolar fields fill the 20°–40° zone completely, and occupy about 75% of the 0°–20° and 40°–60° zones.The polar unipolar fields are weak on the whole (Bmajor 4 G for 6 typical days in 1976–79), with small regions having stronger fields at times, probably not exceeding B _major = 10 G. Again B _minor 0.1 B _major. There is no direct way at present of measuring properties of polar mixed fields, such as may occur around sunspot maximum, but by inference ¦B¦ 2 to 5 G.Operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under contract with the National Science Foundation.     

Inferring the depth extent of the horizontal supergranular flow

The 2D horizontal velocity field determined from local correlation tracking of granulation and its divergence have remarkably different appearances. The 2D horizontal velocity shows the classical 32 Mm supergranular cellular outflow bounded by the chromospheric network, whereas the divergence is dominated by distinct long-lived sources and sinks of about 7 Mm size. The 2D horizontal velocity shows no obvious evidence for 7 Mm cells, and the divergence exhibits little power with the 32 Mm scale. However, by mass continuity for a steady 3D flow in a stratified atmosphere, the divergence of the 2D horizontal component is equal to the vertical velocity divided by a height scale. Thus the 3D steady solar flow field at the bottom of the photosphere has a vertical component consisting primarily of 7 Mm sources and sinks, which define the 2D cellular-like 32 Mm continuous horizontal outflows.Simultaneous Doppler vertical velocity measurements verify the mass-continuity relation, and give a height scale equal to the density scale height in the photosphere within observational error. The observational result is consistent with our theoretical expectation. Any height scale other than the density scale height would indicate a vertical velocity thate-folds on a scale comparable to or smaller than the density scale height, which we argue is unphysical near the top of the convection zone. The continuity relation indicates that vortex-free steady horizontal velocities seen at the solar surface, i.e., the horizontal supergranular flow, must diminish with depth due to the increasing density scale height. We estimate that the horizontal supergranular flow cannot extend much more than onee-fold increase in the density scale height below the visible solar surface, about 2.4 Mm. Therefore the convection below the solar surface should be characterized by the scale of the principal steady vertical velocity component, i.e., by vertical plumes having a dimension of 7 Mm - what we have called mesogranulation - rather than closed 32 Mm cells as is widely believed.Operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc. (AURA) under cooperative agreement with National Science Foundation.     

The existence of long-lived rays of the coronal streamer belt – Radial density and velocity distributions of the solar wind flowing in them

A technique is proposed for separating the rays of the streamer belt with quasi-stationary and non-stationary solar wind (SW) flows. It is shown that the lifetime of rays with a quasi-stationary SW can exceed 20 days. A new method has been developed for measuring the relative density distribution of a quasi-stationary slow SW flowing along the streamer belt's ray of increased brightness, based on the LASCO/SOHO data. It is shown that the density n for such SW flows varies with the radius R according to the relationship nR ^–, where =₁3.3–3.9 within 4 R ₀ R 6 R ₀ (here R ₀ is the solar radius), and decreases gradually further away. It is also shown that the V(R)-profiles in some rays of the streamer belt differ little from each other, although the value of the mass flow density, j _E, at the Earth's orbit in them can vary more than by a factor of 4. This distinguishes in a crucial respect a slow SW in the streamer belt's rays from a fast SW originating in coronal holes, for which j _Econstant and the dependences V(R) in different fast flows can differ greatly.     

Measurements of magnetic fields in solar corona as based on the radio observations of the inversion of polarization of local sources at microwaves

The possibility of measuring magnetic fields of solar active regions at coronal heights up to 10¹⁰ cm by observing the inversion of circular polarization of local sources at microwaves is demonstrated. The observations by the radiotelescope RATAN-600 were accomplished with the angular resolution 17–34 in the wavelength range 2–4 cm. It is found that the inversion of polarization occured within a core of local source situated above the largest sunspot of Mc Math 14822. The inversion was followed during the period of June 30–July 3, 1977. The measured coronal magnetic field of 16 G is found to be at the height 12 × 10⁹ cm. This measured field proves to agree with a simulated potential structure of Mc Math 14822 coronal magnetic field. Our analysis of the inversion has been based on the theory of interaction (coupling) of the ordinary and extraordinary wave modes in the region of quasi-transverse propagation.     

The properties of plasma flows in fine ray structures of the streamer belt

We show that within distances from the Sun's surface less than the height of a streamer helmet, each of two neighboring rays of the streamer belt, as they approach the solar surface, bends around the helmet on either side of it. Also, a minimum angular diameter of the rays of d2°–3° remains virtually constant within R=1.2–6.0 R . A density inhomogeneity (`blob') can be produced above the helmet top visible to at least R6 R . In this case the initial velocity of the `blob' increases with solar distance from where it is generated to something like the velocity of the bulk solar wind with which the `blob' is carried away.     

An investigation of the fine ray structure of the coronal streamer belt using LASCO data

It is shown that within R>3–4 Rfrom the solar center the coronal streamer belt consists in a sequence of radial brightness rays. A minimum angular size of the individual ray d2.0°–2.5°, which is about the same in the directions normal to and along the streamer-belt, is independent of the distance from the Sun at R=4–6 R. The lifetime of the rays can exceed 10 days. From time to time, inhomogeneities of material inside the rays begin to move in the antisunward direction. Plots of increase in their velocity with the distance from the Sun are similar to those obtained by Sheeley et al. (1997) for inhomogeneities that are carried by a quasi-stationary solar wind in streamers. It is concluded that the phenomena discussed in this paper and by Sheeley et al. (1997) share a common origin. It is suggested that a different origin of solar wind flows in streamers and in coronal holes may be associated with a different character of flows in microtubes of the magnetic field comprising a total solar wind flow. These tubes are observed as brightness rays in streamer belts and plumes in coronal holes.     

Is there a precession-type movement in the nucleus of NGC 4151?

Optical spectra of the NGC 4151 with the TV scanner of the 6-meter telescope in 1986–1991 are presented. Spectra averaged over periods of 2.5 months show changes of asymmetry of the He II 4686 Å broad emission line with a characteristic time scale 2 years (the full cycle of the changes is approximately 4 years). Possible explanations involving a precession-type of movement of cones of ionizing radiation are discussed.     

A Detached Binary System V505 Persei

The UBV photometry of a detached F-type eclipsing binary V505 Persei is presented. The light curve solution by a simple spherical model combined with the radial velocity data from two high resolution spectra by Marschall et al. (1990) reveals that the system is formed with two identical component stars of M 1.2 M in the main sequence close to ZAMS in evolution. They should have about solar metallicity (z 0.017). The isochrones with solar metallicity by Van denBerg (1985) yield an age of about (2.2± 0.5) × 10⁹ yr for the system. The distance of the system should be about 60 pc.