On Analysis of Dual Spacecraft Stereoscopic Observations to Determine the Three-Dimensional Morphology and Plasma Properties of Solar Coronal Flux Tubes

By using two spacecraft equipped with multi-bandpass X-ray telescopes, it is possible to obtain direct 3-dimensional morphology of coronal structures which is essential for understanding the energetics and dynamics of the solar atmosphere. X-ray observations taken only in orbit about the Earth are inadequate to fully resolve the 3-dimensional nature of the solar corona. These Earth-orbit observations produce 2-dimensional images and an appropriate model must be included to derive the 3-dimensional structures from the line-of-sight information. Stereoscopic observations from space will remove this limitation and are needed if we are to improve our knowledge of the 3-dimensional morphology of the corona.Several important points regarding a stereoscopic mission are investigated and illustrated using model coronal flux tubes and image-rendering techniques. Synthesized images are formed by integrating the emission from volume elements along the line-of-sight path through a 3-dimensional volume in which a set of model flux tubes are located. The flux tubes are defined by (1) a plasma model defining the emissivity for a specific density, temperature, and pressure distribution, and (2) a magnetic field model from which a set of field lines are selected to define the geometry of the flux tubes. The field lines are used to define the flux-tube volume by assuming an initial base radius and conservation of flux. An effective instrumental spectral-response function is folded into the integration. Analysis of pairs of these synthesized images with various angular perspectives are used to investigate the effect of angular separation on mission objectives. The resulting images and analysis provide guidelines for developing a stereoscopic mission.Our study produced four important results, namely: (1) An angular separation of 30 degrees maximizes the scientific return by direct triangulation analysis because of the tradeoff between increased line-of-sight resolution of position and decreased recognition of individual loop structures arising from the overlapping of multiple loops with increasing angular separation. (2) The analysis benefits from the use of time-differential images to select flux tubes from the collection of numerous overlapping systems by selecting only recently heated or cooled flux tubes. (3) An analysis needs to be developed for algebraic reconstruction techniques applying a priori information, specific to the solar coronal structures, i.e., flux-tube continuity, maximum emission strength, non-negative emission, previous history, and maximum gradients of emission. (4) An analysis strategy combining triangulation, modeling techniques, and algebraic restoration is necessary to derive a complete understanding of the 3-dimensional morphology of the magnetic field. In the same way that helioseismology is classical viewing of the Sun with a tailored set of analysis tools for probing the interior of the Sun, heliostereoscopy is classical viewing of the X-ray emitting corona and requires a tailored set of analysis tools to deduce the true 3-dimensional structure of the corona.     

Main Cause of the Poloidal Plasma Motion Inside a Magnetic Cloud Inferred from Multiple-Spacecraft Observations

Although the dynamical evolution of magnetic clouds (MCs) has been one of the foci of interplanetary physics for decades, only few studies focus on the internal properties of large-scale MCs. Recent work by Wang et al. (J. Geophys. Res. 120, 1543, 2015) suggested the existence of the poloidal plasma motion in MCs. However, the main cause of this motion is not clear. In order to find it, we identify and reconstruct the MC observed by the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO)-A, Wind, and STEREO-B spacecraft during 19?–?20 November 2007 with the aid of the velocity-modified cylindrical force-free flux-rope model. We analyze the plasma velocity in the plane perpendicular to the MC axis. It is found that there was evident poloidal motion at Wind and STEREO-B, but this was not clear at STEREO-A, which suggests a local cause rather than a global cause for the poloidal plasma motion inside the MC. The rotational directions of the solar wind and MC plasma at the two sides of the MC boundary are found to be consistent, and the values of the rotational speeds of the solar wind and MC plasma at the three spacecraft show a rough correlation. All of these results illustrate that the interaction with ambient solar wind through viscosity might be one of the local causes of the poloidal motion. Additionally, we propose another possible local cause: the existence of a pressure gradient in the MC. The significant difference in the total pressure at the three spacecraft suggests that this speculation is perhaps correct.     

Observations from space of the solar corona/inner zodical light

Observations, from the Apollo 16 Spacecraft, in lunar orbit, of the total radiance of the K + F corona, from 3 R to 55 R are presented and discussed.

The logarithmic slope of the K + F coronal radiance, in the region r > 20 R, is found to be n = 1.93, slightly less steep than previous determinations. The photometric axis of the radiance is found to be displaced 3 ± 1° north of the ecliptic, for the region r > 20 R, and this displacement is interpreted as an annual variation due to non-coincidence of the ecliptic and the symmetry axis of the zodiacal cloud.     

On the Origin of the 1999 Leonid Storm as Deduced from Photographic Observations

Photographic multi-station observations of 18 Leonid meteorsobtained by the Spanish Photographic Meteor Network are presented. For each meteoroidthe radiant position, trajectory data and orbital parameters are discussed and compared totheoretical radiant positions and orbital elements of particles ejected from 55P/Tempel–Tuttle in 1899.We discuss the role of mean velocity imprecision in the dispersion of some orbital parameters,specially the semimajor axis. Finally, by applying the dust trail theory we have adjusted the1999 Leonidstorm orbits to a defined semimajor axis value to test the quality of photographic observations.     

Dynamics of the solar magnetic field from SOHO/MDI

The investigation of the dynamics of magnetic fields from small scales to the large scales is very important for the understanding of the nature of solar activity. It is also the base for producing adequate models of the solar cycle with the purpose to predict the level of solar activity. Since December 1995 the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) on board of the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) provides full disk magnetograms and synoptic maps which cover the period of solar cycle 23 and the current minimum. In this paper, I review the following important topics with a focus on the dynamics of the solar magnetic field. The synoptic structure of the solar cycle; the birth of the solar cycle (overlapping cycles 23 and 24); the relationship of the photospheric magnetic activity and the EUV solar corona, polar magnetic fields and dynamo theory (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

The Data Flow, from Observations to the Archive: Simulating the Case of TNG

The telescopes of the new generation allow an archive to be built as a section of data management; nevertheless, careful planning is needed and data handling needs to be designed together with the control system of the telescope itself, both for space-borne and for ground-based facilities. Simulations are essential to understand how observations will be archived, and to build and test an archiving system capable of dealing efficiently with the expected data flow.The TNG (Telescopio Nazionale Galileo) will be one of the first ground-based observing facilities where archiving of both technical and scientific data will be made directly at the telescope as a natural extension of the data handling chain. The results obtained testing the prototype implementation of the archive system at the TNG with a simulated data flow will be shown.     

The Creation of Outflowing Plasma in the Corona at Emerging Flux Regions: Comparing Observations and Simulations

In this paper we analyse the flux emergence that occurred in the following polarity area of an active region on 1 – 2 December 2006. Observations have revealed the existence of fast outflows at the edge of the emerging flux region. We have performed 3-D numerical simulations to study the mechanisms responsible for these flows. The results indicate that these outflows are reconnection jets or pressure-driven outflows, depending on the relative orientation of the magnetic fields in contact (i.e. the emerging flux and the active region’s field which is favourable for reconnection on the west side and nearly parallel with the pre-existing field on the east side of the emerging flux). In the observations, the flows are larger on the west side until late in the flux emergence, when the reverse is true. The simulations show that the flows are faster on the west side, but do not show the east flows increasing with time. There is an asymmetry in the expansion of the emerging flux region, which is also seen in the observations. The west side of the emerging flux region expands faster into the corona than the other side. In the simulations, efficient magnetic reconnection occurs on the west side, with new loops being created containing strong downflows that are clearly seen in the observations. On the other side, the simulations show strong compression as the dominant mechanism for the generation of flows. There is evidence of these flows in the observations, but the flows are stronger than the simulations predict at the later stages. There could be additional small-angle reconnection that adds to the flows from the compression, as well as reconnection occurring in larger loops that lie across the whole active region.     

Dynamics of Large-Scale Solar-Wind Streams Obtained by the Double Superposed Epoch Analysis: 3. Deflection of the Velocity Vector

This work is a continuation of our previous articles (Yermolaev et al. in J. Geophys. Res.120, 7094, 2015 and Yermolaev et al. in Solar Phys.292, 193, 2017), which describe the average temporal profiles of interplanetary plasma and field parameters in large-scale solar-wind (SW) streams: corotating interaction regions (CIRs), interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs, including both magnetic clouds (MCs) and ejecta), and sheaths as well as interplanetary shocks (ISs). Changes in the longitude angle, \(\varphi\), in CIRs from ?2 to \(2^{\circ}\) agree with earlier results (e.g. Gosling and Pizzo, 1999). We have also analyzed the average temporal profiles of the bulk velocity angles in sheaths and ICMEs. We have found that the angle \(\varphi\) in ICMEs changes from 2 to \(-2^{\circ}\), while in sheaths it changes from ?2 to \(2^{\circ}\) (similar to the change in CIRs), i.e. the angle in CIRs and sheaths deflects in the opposite sense to ICMEs. When averaging the latitude angle \(\vartheta\) on all the intervals of the chosen SW types, the angle \(\vartheta\) is almost constant at \({\sim}\,1^{\circ}\). We made for the first time a selection of SW events with increasing and decreasing \(\vartheta\) and found that the average \(\vartheta\) temporal profiles in the selected events have the same “integral-like” shape as for \(\varphi\). The difference in \(\varphi\) and \(\vartheta\) average profiles is explained by the fact that most events have increasing profiles for the angle in the ecliptic plane as a result of solar rotation, while for the angle in the meridional plane, the numbers of events with increasing and decreasing profiles are equal.     

Observations of the microwave emission of Venus from 1.3 to 3.6 cm

Laboratory measurements of Steffes (1986) have suggested that the intensity and shape of the microwave spectrum of Venus might be especially sensitive to the subcloud abundance of constituents such as SO2 and gaseous H2SO4. It was likewise suggested that some variations of the shape of the emission spectrum might occur between 1.5 and 3 cm (10 to 20 GHz), a wavelength range which had previously only been sparsely observed. As a result, coordinated observations of Venus emission were conducted at four wavelengths between 1.35 cm (22.2 GHz) and 3.6 cm (8.42 GHz) using the 43-m NRAO antenna at Green Bank, West Virginia, and the 64-m antenna at NASA's Deep Space Communication Complex, Goldstone, California. In this paper, we report the methodology and results of these observations, and compare the results with other observations and with calculated emission spectra. We conclude that the observed emission spectrum is consistent with an average subcloud abundance of gaseous H2SO4 in equatorial and midlatitude regions which is approximately 5 ppm. It is suggested that additional measurements of atmospheric microwave opacity be made with the Pioneer-Venus Orbiter Radio Occultation experiment to search for temporal and spatial variations in gaseous H2SO4 abundance in the Venus atmosphere. An upper limit for the subcloud abundance of SO2 is also determined.     

Dynamics of Two Planets in the 3/2 Mean-motion Resonance: Application to the Planetary System of the Pulsar PSR B1257+12

This paper considers the dynamics of two planets, as the planets B and C of the pulsar PSR B1257+12, near a 3/2 mean-motion resonance. A two-degrees-of-freedom model, in the framework of the general three-body planar problem, is used and the solutions are analyzed through surfaces of section and Fourier techniques in the full phase space of the system.On the possibility of existence of a fourth planet in distant orbit, see Wolszczan et al., 2000     

Application of Spectroscopic Diagnostics to Early Observations with the SOHO Coronal Diagnostic Spectrometer

The Coronal Diagnostic Spectrometer (CDS) has as a scientific goal the determination of the physical parameters of the solar plasma using spectroscopic diagnostic techniques. Absolute intensities and intensity ratios of the EUV spectral emission lines can be used to obtain information on the electron density and temperature structure, element abundances, and dynamic nature of different features in the solar atmosphere. To ensure that these techniques are accurate it is necessary to interface solar analysis programs with the best available atomic data calculations. Progress is reported on this work in relation to CDS observations.     

On Continuous Observations of Thin Walls of High-Density Plasma in the High-Latitude Ionosphere from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Arktika-M</Emphasis> Satellites

A new structure element of the Arctic ionosphere has been detected from the data of topside sounding of the ionosphere: quasi-vertical walls of high-density plasma. The importance of studying this phenomenon for geophysics and the practice of radio wave propagation in high latitudes is noted. The Arktika-M hydrometeorological space complex with an onboard ionosonde is proposed for its study. The possibility of observing and analyzing all life-cycle phases of this ionospheric inhomogeneity is shown.     

Near-IR Reflectance Spectroscopy of 433 Eros from the NIS Instrument on the NEAR Mission: I. Low Phase Angle Observations

From February 13 to May 13, 2000, the near-infrared spectrometer (NIS) instrument on the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft obtained more than 200,000 spatially resolved 800- to 2500-nm reflectance spectra of the S-type asteroid 433 Eros. An important subset of the spectra was obtained during a unique opportunity on February 13 and 14, when the NEAR spacecraft flew directly through the 0° phase angle point between Eros and the Sun just prior to the orbital insertion maneuver. This low phase flyby (LPF) dataset consists of ∼2000 spectra of the northern hemisphere of Eros, obtained from 1° to 47° phase angle and at spatial resolutions of between 6×12 km to 1.25×2.50 km per spectrum. The spectra were calibrated to radiance factor (I/F, where I=observed radiance and πF=solar input radiance) and then photometrically corrected to normal albedo. The average northern hemisphere spectrum of Eros is similar to the asteroid's unresolved telescopic spectrum and exhibits absorption features near 1000 nm (Band I) and 2000 nm (Band II) consistent with an orthopyroxene to orthopyroxene+olivine (opx+ol) mixing ratio of approximately 0.38±0.08. The ensemble of NIS LPF spectra falls primarily within the S(IV) to upper S(III) fields of the Gaffey et al. (1993) S-asteroid classification scheme and exhibits Band I and Band II properties similar to those of ordinary chondrite meteorites. While some small spatially coherent spectral variations have been detected, neither the opx/opx+ol) mixing ratio nor other spectral parameters vary spatially by more than ∼1σ across the entire northern hemisphere of the asteroid, suggesting a remarkable homogeneity of the composition and mineralogy of the uppermost regolith. Spectral mixture modeling suggests that the presence of glass and/or a reddening agent like nanophase iron, likely formed from exposure of the regolith to the space environment, is a component of the surface of Eros. Reddening and darkening components could also explain the dissimilarity in overall spectral slope and albedo between Eros and other S(IV) asteroids and ordinary chondrite meteorites. The largest (but still weak) spectral variations across the surface are seen in the depths of Band I and Band II, which are greatest in and around the largest craters and at the 0° longitude “nose” of the asteroid, and in the Band II/Band I area ratio between the large impact craters Psyche and Himeros. These subtle NIS spectral variations are usually associated with albedo and surface slope variations seen in NEAR imaging and topographic data and appear to be related to downslope movement of regolith materials.     

Plasma and Magnetic-Field Characteristics of Magnetic Decreases in the Solar Wind at 1 AU: Cluster-C1 Observations

Magnetic decreases (MDs) are structures observed in interplanetary space with significant decreases in magnetic-field magnitude. Events with little or no change in the field direction are called linear magnetic decreases (LMDs), the others are called nonlinear MDs (NMDs). In this article we focus on LMD and NMD trains, where LMD trains are defined as at least three LMDs in a row and NMD trains as trains (≥ three MDs in a row) that are not all linear. If the temporal separation between two MDs was shorter than five minutes, they were considered as one train event. A total of 16?273 MD trains (including 897 LMD trains and 15?376 NMD trains) were identified and studied. The details of the background magnetic-field and plasma (e.g. ion-density and velocity) features were examined and compared with the average solar-wind properties. LMD trains are found to occur in regions with relatively low magnetic-field strengths, high ion-number densities, and large plasma βs (ratio of the plasma thermal pressure to the magnetic pressure). In sharp contrast, NMD trains have plasma properties similar to the average solar wind. Forty-three LMD trains are related to interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) (including 19 events that occurred in ICME sheaths and 24 in the ICME proper), while 222 LMD trains occurred in corotating interaction regions (CIRs), and the remaining 632 events in the normal solar wind. The LMD trains that occurred in ICME sheaths are thought to be associated with the generation mechanism of the mirror-mode instability. Only 552 of the NMD trains are related to ICMEs (including 236 events in ICME sheaths and 316 in ICMEs proper), while 3889 (25 %) NMD trains occurred in CIRs, and the remaining 71 % occurred in the normal solar wind. Because the NMD trains have various plasma properties that differ from the LMD trains, we suggest that NMD trains may be generated by different mechanisms, for instance by a steepening of Alfvén waves.     

Dynamics of Trees of Fragmenting Granules in the Quiet Sun: <Emphasis Type="Italic">Hinode</Emphasis>/SOT Observations Compared to Numerical Simulation

We compare horizontal velocities, vertical magnetic fields, and the evolution of trees of fragmenting granules (TFG, also named families of granules) derived in the quiet Sun at disk center from observations at solar minimum and maximum of the Solar Optical Telescope (SOT on board Hinode) and results of a recent 3D numerical simulation of the magneto-convection. We used 24-hour sequences of a 2D field of view (FOV) with high spatial and temporal resolution recorded by the SOT Broad band Filter Imager (BFI) and Narrow band Filter Imager (NFI). TFG were evidenced by segmentation and labeling of continuum intensities. Horizontal velocities were obtained from local correlation tracking (LCT) of proper motions of granules. Stokes V provided a proxy of the line-of-sight magnetic field (BLOS). The MHD simulation (performed independently) produced granulation intensities, velocity, and magnetic field vectors. We discovered that TFG also form in the simulation and show that it is able to reproduce the main properties of solar TFG: lifetime and size, associated horizontal motions, corks, and diffusive index are close to observations. The largest (but not numerous) families are related in both cases to the strongest flows and could play a major role in supergranule and magnetic network formation. We found that observations do not reveal any significant variation in TFG between solar minimum and maximum.     

Electron Temperature in the Solar Wind From a Kinetic Collisionless Model: Application to High-Latitude Ulysses Observations

We use a kinetic collisionless model of the solar wind to calculate the radial variation of the electron temperature and obtain analytical expressions at large radial distances. In order to be compared with Ulysses observations, the model, which initially assumed a radial magnetic field, has been generalized to a spiral magnetic field. We present a preliminary comparison with Ulysses observations in the fast solar wind at high heliospheric latitudes. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Evolution of the Fine Structure of Magnetic Fields in the Quiet Sun: Observations from Sunrise/IMaX and Extrapolations

Observations with the balloon-borne Sunrise/Imaging Magnetograph eXperiment (IMaX) provide high spatial resolution (roughly 100 km at disk center) measurements of the magnetic field in the photosphere of the quiet Sun. To investigate the magnetic structure of the chromosphere and corona, we extrapolate these photospheric measurements into the upper solar atmosphere and analyze a 22-minute long time series with a cadence of 33 seconds. Using the extrapolated magnetic-field lines as tracer, we investigate temporal evolution of the magnetic connectivity in the quiet Sun’s atmosphere. The majority of magnetic loops are asymmetric in the sense that the photospheric field strength at the loop foot points is very different. We find that the magnetic connectivity of the loops changes rapidly with a typical connection recycling time of about 3±1 minutes in the upper solar atmosphere and 12±4 minutes in the photosphere. This is considerably shorter than previously found. Nonetheless, our estimate of the energy released by the associated magnetic-reconnection processes is not likely to be the sole source for heating the chromosphere and corona in the quiet Sun.     

An Early Diagnostics of the Geoeffectiveness of Solar Eruptions from Photospheric Magnetic Flux Observations: The Transition from SOHO to SDO

In our previous articles (Chertok et al. in Solar Phys. 282, 175, 2013; Chertok et al. in Solar Phys. 290, 627, 2015), we presented a preliminary tool for the early diagnostics of the geoeffectiveness of solar eruptions based on the estimate of the total unsigned line-of-sight photospheric magnetic flux in accompanying extreme ultraviolet (EUV) arcades and dimmings. This tool was based on the analysis of eruptions observed during 1996?–?2005 with the Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT) and the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). Empirical relationships were obtained to estimate the probable importance of upcoming space weather disturbances caused by an eruption, which just occurred, without data on the associated coronal mass ejections. In particular, it was possible to estimate the intensity of a non-recurrent geomagnetic storm (GMS) and Forbush decrease (FD), as well as their onset and peak times. After 2010?–?2011, data on solar eruptions are obtained with the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). We use relatively short intervals of overlapping EIT–AIA and MDI–HMI detailed observations, and additionally, a number of large eruptions over the next five years with the 12-hour cadence EIT images to adapt the SOHO diagnostic tool to SDO data. We show that the adopted brightness thresholds select practically the same areas of arcades and dimmings from the EIT 195 Å and AIA 193 Å image, with a cross-calibration factor of 3.6?–?5.8 (5.0?–?8.2) for the AIA exposure time of 2.0 s (2.9 s). We also find that for the same photospheric areas, the MDI line-of-sight magnetic flux systematically exceeds the HMI flux by a factor of 1.4. Based on these results, the empirical diagnostic relationships obtained from SOHO data are adjusted to SDO instruments. Examples of a post-diagnostics based on SDO data are presented. As before, the tool is applicable to non-recurrent GMSs and FDs caused by nearly central eruptions from active regions, provided that the southern component of the interplanetary magnetic field near the Earth is predominantly negative, which is not predicted by this tool.     

Application of the Information Criterion to the Estimation ofGalaxy Luminosity Function

To determine the exact shape of the luminosity function (LF) of galaxies is one of the central problems in galactic astronomy and observational cosmology. The most popular method to estimate the LF is maximum likelihood, which is clearly understood with the concepts of the information theory. In the field of information theory and statistical inference, great advance has been made by the discovery of Akaike's Information Criterion (AIC). It enables us to perform a direct comparison among different types of model swith different numbers of parameters, and provides us a common basis of the model adequacy. In this paper we applied AIC to the determination of the shape of the LF. We first treated the estimation using stepwise LF(Efstathiou, Ellis and Peterson,1988), and derived a formula to obtain the optimal bin number. In addition, we studied the method to compare the goodness-of-fit of the parametric form (Sandage, Tamman and Yahil, 1979) with stepwise LF. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.