Microwave and Hard X-Ray Observations of the 2017 September 10 Solar Limb Flare

Abstract

Abstract We report the first science results from the newly completed Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA), which obtained excellent microwave (MW) imaging spectroscopy observations of SOL2017-09-10, a classic partially occulted solar limb flare associated with an erupting flux rope. This event is also well-covered by the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) in hard X-rays (HXRs). We present an overview of this event focusing on MW and HXR data, both associated with high-energy nonthermal electrons, and we discuss them within the context of the flare geometry and evolution revealed by extreme ultraviolet observations from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) aboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory. The EOVSA and RHESSI data reveal the evolving spatial and energy distribution of high-energy electrons throughout the entire flaring region. The results suggest that the MW and HXR sources largely arise from a common nonthermal electron population, although the MW imaging spectroscopy provides information over a much larger volume of the corona.