The route to chaos during a pulsation event

A time series analysis of a pulsation event in solar radio emission provides an evolution from a regular doubly periodic phase to an irregular behaviour. Applying some techniques developed in the theory of nonlinear dynamic systems to this irregular stage suggests that there exists a low-dimensional attractor. Estimates of the maximum Lyapunov exponent give some evidence to deterministic chaos. The sudden transition from a regular to a chaotic structure is identified as a part of the Ruelle-Takens-Newhouse route to chaos which is typical in nonlinear systems. It is checked whether this pulsation event may be interpreted in terms of known pulsation models. Consequences for models, which are suitable to describe such an evolution, are discussed.     

An analysis of Skylab X-ray pictures of a giant coronal arch

The limb event of 13/14 August, 1973, imaged by Skylab in soft X-rays, proved to be a giant arch, quite similar to those observed in 1980–1986 on SMM. High spatial resolution (by a factor of 4–5 better than in SMM data) made it possible to see the internal structure of the arch. Its brightest part consisted of loops very similar to, but higher than, post-flare loops, surrounded by a rich system of weak loop structures extending up to altitudes of 260 000 km. While the main brightest structure of the arch was newly formed, the weak very large loops had existed above the active region before and were only enhanced during the event.Skylab data support the model proposed by Kopp and Poletto that the giant arch is formed by reconnections high in the corona, different from the reconnection process in the underlying flare. However, contrary to Kopp and Poletto's suggestion, the data strongly indicate that the field lines that reconnect in the arch did not open before, as in the Kopp and Pneuman model: more likely, we encounter here an interaction of large-scale loops high in the corona. (The interaction of two of them is clearly seen.) Thus, while post-flare loops are formed by the Kopp and Pneuman mechanism, giant arches above eruptive flares may originate through interactive reconnections of large-scale magnetic field lines which form loops high in the corona. These loops are brought close to each other in consequence of changes in the coronal structure caused by the eruptive flare phenomenon. The arch-associated enhancement of the pre-existing large-scale active-region loops may be caused by electrons accelerated during the reconnection process and diffusing across field lines, as suggested by Achterberg and Kuipers (1984).     

The acceleration of back-scattered beam electrons in a return-current electric field

Using a 1-D hybrid model of the electron beam bombardment in a flare loop, it is demonstrated that beam electrons, back-scattered in dense layers of the solar atmosphere, are accelerated in the return-current electric field. This effect is shown in two regimes of the electron beam bombardment: (a) with a monoenergetic quasi-steady beam, and (b) with a sequence of 4 pulse beams. It is suggested that the mirroring of electrons at loop magnetic mirrors can amplify this process. The role of such acceleration for the formation of a collisionless return-current, and thus for a decrease of return-current losses, is discussed.     

The generation of MHD shock waves during the impulsive phase of the February 27, 1992 flare

In this paper a unique 2.3–4.2 GHz radio spectrum of the flare impulsive phase, showing fast positively drifting bursts superimposed on a slowly negatively drifting burst, is presented. Analyzing this radio spectrum it was found that the flare started somewhere near the transition region, where upward propagating MHD waves were generated during the whole impulsive phase. Moreover, it was found that behind a front of these ascending MHD waves the downward propagating electron beams, which bombarded dense layers of the solar atmosphere, were accelerated. It seems that, simultaneously with the increase of beam bombardment intensity, the intensity of MHD waves was increasing and thus the MHD shock wave generation and the electron beam acceleration and bombardment formed a self-consistently amplifying flare process. At higher coronal heights this process was followed by a type II radio burst, i.e. by the MHD flare shock. To verify this concept, the numerical modeling of the shock-wave generation and propagation in space from a flare site near the transition region up to 3 solar radii was made. Comparing the thermal and magnetic field disturbances, it was found that those of magnetic origin are more relevant in this case. Combining the results of interpretation and numerical simulation, a model of the February 27, 1992 flare is suggested and new aspects of this model are discussed.     

Optical Thickness of the 2–4.5 GHz Solar Plasma Emission

For radio emission at the frequency corresponding to the second harmonic of the local plasma frequency, the optical thickness in the solar atmosphere is calculated. Three types of models are assumed: the model with radio emission from the narrow transition region, and models with radio emission from a cool and dense plasma filament embedded in hotter plasma at the transition region and in the corona. The optical thickness is computed by integration of the collisional (free–free) absorption along a radio-ray path radial in the solar atmosphere. In all models considered the optical thickness can be sufficiently low for appropriate parameters. For example, in the narrow (<100 km) transition region where the density scale height is much less than that of the pressure one, the optical thickness can be lower than 1. Furthermore, the optical thickness can be decreased if the radio emission is generated in the cool and dense plasma filament surrounded by hotter and thinner plasma. But the models differ in density scale heights and thus in distances between plasma emission levels. This difference is essential for the interpretation of high-frequency type III radio bursts.     

Reduction of steady-state forced vibrations of structures with dynamic absorbers

In the paper the problem of reduction of the steady-state response of a lightly damped structure to periodic excitation is considered. The primary structure, which has arbitrary distributions of mass, stiffness and damping, is subjected to periodic load with the fundamental frequency varying in a wide range that may include several resonant peaks of the amplitude-frequency response. A number of passive absorbers are applied simultaneously to the main structure. A general formulation of the dynamic absorber design methodology is presented, based on independent design of conventional absorbers, taking into account the selected modal systems of the original structure and the selected harmonic components of the excitation. In order to cover the losses in the vibration reduction, resulting from the couplings in the primary structure–the set of absorbers system and from the remaining harmonic components of the excitation, the mass of modal dynamic absorbers is increased properly. The methodology developed was verified on several numerical examples; one of them is presented in the study.     

Boron in siliceous materials as a paleosalinity indicator1

The ¹⁰B(n, α)⁷Li nuclear reaction has been used with alpha-sensitive plastic track detectors to determine boron concentrations in siliceous live-collected and fossil sponge spicules. This radiographic technique allows B determinations with 5–6% uncertainties on objects 20–25 μm in diameter and for concentrations as low as 0.5 ppm. Boron concentrations in spicules from different specimens from the same location agreed to within 10% when the spicules were not: (1) smaller than 20 μm in diameter, (2) from dictyonine skeletons, (3) the extremely large root-like spicules found in some soft substrate hexactinellids, or (4) microscleres. These criteria also applied to spicules found in sediment samples. Spicules from live-collected sponges exhibited a taxonomy-independent correlation of B concentrations with water salinity for samples from regions of low water temperature and high productivity. Measured concentrations ranged from nearly 0 ppm B (freshwater sponges) to 500–700 ppm (marine sponges), with intermediate values for brackish-water specimens. However, spicules from tropical, low-productivity marine locations contained markedly less boron than spicules from temperate, high-productivity regions. Thus, water temperature and/or food supply also seem to influence B concentrations. Pleistocene spicules from deep-sea cores contained less boron than was expected in comparison with live-collected spicules based on present water temperatures and nutrient supplies, but B concentrations did not vary with depth in the cores. Infrared spectroscopy, electron microprobe analysis and visual inspection revealed no evidence for chemical or mineralogic alteration. It is not clear whether the lower B concentrations of the Pleistocene samples are the result of diagenetic processes or the as yet undefined effects of differences in food supply and/or environmental conditions.