Coronal Shock Research Articles

TRANSMISSION AND EMISSION OF SOLAR ENERGETIC PARTICLES IN SEMI-TRANSPARENT SHOCKS

While major solar energetic particle (SEP) events are associated with coronal mass ejection (CME)-driven shocks in solar wind, accurate SEP measurements reveal that more than one component of energetic ions exist in the beginning of the events. Solar electromagnetic emissions, including nuclear gamma-rays, suggest that high-energy ions could also be accelerated by coronal shocks, and some of those particles could contribute to SEPs in interplanetary space. However, the CME-driven shock in solar wind is thought to shield any particle source beneath the shock because of the strong scattering required for the diffusive shock acceleration. In this Letter, we consider a shock model that allows energetic particles from the possible behind-shock source to appear in front of the shock simultaneously with SEPs accelerated by the shock itself. We model the energetic particle transport in directions parallel and perpendicular to the magnetic field in a spherical shock expanding through the highly turbulent magnetic sector with an embedded quiet magnetic tube, which makes the shock semi-transparent for energetic particles. The model energy spectra and time profiles of energetic ions escaping far upstream of the shock are similar to the profiles observed during the first hour of some gradual SEP events.

The SupraThermal Ion Monitor for space weather predictions.

Measurement of suprathermal energy ions in the heliosphere has always been challenging because (1) these ions are situated in the energy regime only a few times higher than the solar wind plasma, where intensities are orders of magnitude higher and (2) ion energies are below or close to the threshold of state-of-art solid-state detectors. Suprathermal ions accelerated at coronal mass ejection-driven shocks propagate out ahead of the shocks. These shocks can cause geomagnetic storms in the Earth's magnetosphere that can affect spacecraft and ground-based power and communication systems. An instrument with sufficient sensitivity to measure these ions can be used to predict the arrival of the shocks and provide an advance warning for potentially geo-effective space weather. In this paper, we present a novel energy analyzer concept, the Suprathermal Ion Monitor (STIM) that is designed to measure suprathermal ions with high sensitivity. We show results from a laboratory prototype and demonstrate the feasibility of the concept. A list of key performances is given, as well as a discussion of various possible detectors at the back end. STIM is an ideal candidate for a future space weather monitor in orbit upstream of the near-earth environment, for example, around L1. A scaled-down version is suitable for a CubeSat mission. Such a platform allows proofing the concept and demonstrating its performance in the space environment.

ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES NEAR THE PROTON CYCLOTRON FREQUENCY:STEREOOBSERVATIONS

Transverse, near-circularly polarized, parallel-propagating electromagnetic waves around the proton cyclotron frequency were found sporadically in the solar wind throughout the inner heliosphere. They could play an important role in heating and accelerating the solar wind. These low-frequency waves (LFWs) are intermittent but often occur in prolonged bursts lasting over 10 minutes, named 'LFW storms'. Through a comprehensive survey of them from Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory A using dynamic spectral wave analysis, we have identified 241 LFW storms in 2008, present 0.9% of the time. They are left-hand (LH) or right-hand (RH) polarized in the spacecraft frame with similar characteristics, probably due to Doppler shift of the same type of waves or waves of intrinsically different polarities. In rare cases, the opposite polarities are observed closely in time or even simultaneously. Having ruled out interplanetary coronal mass ejections, shocks, energetic particles, comets, planets, and interstellar ions as LFW sources, we discuss the remaining generation scenarios: LH ion cyclotron instability driven by greater perpendicular temperature than parallel temperature or by ring-beam distribution, and RH ion fire hose instability driven by inverse temperature anisotropy or by cool ion beams. The investigation of solar wind conditions is compromised by the bias of the one-dimensionalmore » Maxwellian fit used for plasma data calibration. However, the LFW storms are preferentially detected in rarefaction regions following fast winds and when the magnetic field is radial. This preference may be related to the ion cyclotron anisotropy instability in fast wind and the minimum in damping along the radial field.« less

A MODEL FOR RADIO EMISSION FROM SOLAR CORONAL SHOCKS

Solar coronal shocks are very common phenomena in the solar atmosphere and are believed to be the drivers of solar type II radio bursts. However, the microphysical nature of these emissions is still an open problem. This paper proposes that electron cyclotron maser (ECM) emission is responsible for the generation of radiations from the coronal shocks. In the present model, an energetic ion beam accelerated by the shock excites first Alfv\'en wave (AW) and then the excited AW leads to the formation of a density-depleted duct along the foreshock boundary of the shock. In this density-depleted duct, the energetic electron beam produced via the shock acceleration can effectively excite radio emission by the ECM instability. Our results show that this model may have potential application to solar type II radio bursts.

The formation heights of coronal shocks from 2D density and Alfvén speed maps

Super-Alfv\'enic shock waves associated with coronal mass ejections (CMEs) can produce radio emission known as Type II bursts. In the absence of direct imaging, accurate estimates of coronal electron densities, magnetic field strengths and Alfv\'en speeds are required in order to calculate the kinematics of shocks. To date, 1D radial models have been used, but these are not appropriate for shocks propagating in non-radial directions. Here, we study a coronal shock wave associated with a CME and Type II radio burst using 2D electron density and Alfv\'en speed maps to determine the locations that shocks are excited as the CME expands through the corona. Coronal density maps were obtained from emission measures derived from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO) and polarized brightness measurements from the Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) on board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). Alfv\'en speed maps were calculated using these density maps and magnetic field extrapolations from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI). The computed density and Alfv\'en speed maps were then used to calculate the shock kinematics in non-radial directions. Using the kinematics of the Type II burst and associated shock, we find our observations to be consistent with the formation of a shock located at the CME flanks where the Alfv\'en speed has a local minimum. 1D density models are not appropriate for shocks that propagate non-radially along the flanks of a CME. Rather, the 2D density, magnetic field and Alfv\'en speed maps described here give a more accurate method for determining the fundamental properties of shocks and their relation to CMEs.

CME Expansion as the Driver of Metric Type II Shock Emission as Revealed by Self-consistent Analysis of High-Cadence EUV Images and Radio Spectrograms

On 13 June 2010, an eruptive event occurred near the solar limb. It included a small filament eruption and the onset of a relatively narrow coronal mass ejection (CME) surrounded by an extreme ultraviolet wave front recorded by the Solar Dynamics Observatory's (SDO) Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) at high cadence. The ejection was accompanied by a GOES M1.0 soft X-ray flare and a Type-II radio burst; high-resolution dynamic spectra of the latter were obtained by the ARTEMIS IV radio spectrograph. The combined observations enabled a study of the evolution of the ejecta and the EUV wavefront and its relationship with the coronal shock manifesting itself as metric Type-II burst. By introducing a novel technique, which deduces a proxy of the EUV compression ratio from AIA imaging data and compares it with the compression ratio deduced from the band-split of the Type-II metric radio burst, we are able to infer the potential source locations of the radio emission of the shock on that AIA images. Our results indicate that the expansion of the CME ejecta is the source for both EUV and radio shock emissions. Early in the CME expansion phase, the Type-II burst seems to originate in the sheath region between the EUV bubble and the EUV shock front in both radial and lateral directions. This suggests that both the nose and the flanks of the expanding bubble could have driven the shock.

Coronal magnetic field strength from Type II radio emission: complementarity with Faraday rotation measurements

We analyzed the band splitting of a Type II radio burst observed on 1997 May 12 by ground- and space-based radio spectrometers. Type II radio emission is the most evident signature of coronal shock waves and the observed band splitting is generally interpreted as due to plasma emission from both upstream and downstream shock regions. From the inferred compression ratio we estimated, using the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) Rankine-Hugoniot relations, the ambient Alfven Mach number. By means of the electron density obtained by inverting white-light polarized brightness (pB) coronagraph data and the shock speed inferred from the Type II frequency drift, we finally derived a radial profile for the magnetic field strength in the middle corona. The result was compared with the field profile obtained in May 1997 (but above $\sim 5 R_{sun}$) with Faraday rotation measurements of extragalactic radio sources occulted by the corona. The power law of the form $B(r)$ = 3.76 $r^{-2.29}$ Gauss inferred in that work nicely describes the combined set of data in a wide range of heliocentric distances ($r$ $\sim$ 1.8 - 14 $R_{sun}$).

An Investigation of the CME of 3 November 2011 and Its Associated Widespread Solar Energetic Particle Event

Multi-spacecraft observations are used to study the in-situ effects of a large coronal mass ejection (CME) erupting from the farside of the Sun on 3 November 2011, with particular emphasis on the associated solar energetic particle (SEP) event. At that time both Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) spacecraft were located more than 90 degrees from Earth and could observe the CME eruption directly, with the CME visible on-disk from STEREO-B and off the limb from STEREO-A. Signatures of pressure variations in the corona such as deflected streamers were seen, indicating the presence of a coronal shock associated with this CME eruption. The evolution of the CME and an associated extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) wave were studied using EUV and coronagraph images. It was found that the lateral expansion of the CME low in the corona closely tracked the propagation of the EUV wave, with measured velocities of 240±19 km s−1 and 221±15 km s−1 for the CME and wave, respectively. Solar energetic particles were observed to arrive first at STEREO-A, followed by electrons at the Wind spacecraft at L1, then STEREO-B, and finally protons arrived simultaneously at Wind and STEREO-B. By carrying out a velocity-dispersion analysis on the particles arriving at each location, it was found that energetic particles arriving at STEREO-A were released first and that the release of particles arriving at STEREO-B was delayed by about 50 minutes. Analysis of the expansion of the CME to a wider longitude range indicates that this delay is a result of the time taken for the CME edge to reach the footpoints of the magnetic-field lines connected to STEREO-B. The CME expansion is not seen to reach the magnetic footpoint of Wind at the time of solar-particle release for the particles detected here, suggesting that these particles may not be associated with this CME.

Injection of thermal and suprathermal seed particles into coronal shocks of varying obliquity

Context: Diffusive shock acceleration in the solar corona can accelerate solar energetic particles to very high energies. Acceleration efficiency is increased by entrapment through self-generated waves, which is highly dependent on the amount of accelerated particles. This, in turn, is determined by the efficiency of particle injection into the acceleration process. Aims: We present an analysis of the injection efficiency at coronal shocks of varying obliquity. We assessed injection through reflection and downstream scattering, including the effect of a cross-shock potential. Both quasi-thermal and suprathermal seed populations were analysed. We present results on the effect of cross-field diffusion downstream of the shock on the injection efficiency. Methods: Using analytical methods, we present applicable injection speed thresholds that were compared with both semi-analytical flux integration and Monte Carlo simulations, which do not resort to binary thresholds. Shock-normal angle and shock-normal velocity were varied to assess the injection efficiency with respect to these parameters. Results: We present evidence of a significant bias of thermal seed particle injection at small shock-normal angles. We show that downstream isotropisation methods affect the theta-dependence of this result. We show a non-negligible effect caused by the cross-shock potential, and that the effect of downstream cross-field diffusion is highly dependent on boundary definitions. Conclusions: Our results show that for Monte Carlo simulations of coronal shock acceleration a full distribution function assessment with downstream isotropisation through scatterings is necessary to realistically model particle injection. Based on our results, seed particle injection at quasi-parallel coronal shocks can result in significant acceleration efficiency, especially when combined with varying field-line geometry.

Deformation and deceleration of coronal wave

Aims. We studied the kinematics and morphology of two coronal waves to better understand the nature and origin of coronal waves. Methods. Using multi-wavelength observations of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUVI) on board the twin spacecraft Solar-TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO), we present morphological and dynamic characteristics of consecutive coronal waves on 2011 March 24. We also show the coronal magnetic field based on the potential field source surface model. Results. This event contains several interesting aspects. The first coronal wave initially appeared after a surge-like eruption. Its front was changed and deformed significantly from a convex shape to a line-shaped appearance, and then to a concave configuration during its propagation to the northwest. The initial speeds ranged from 947 km s(-1) to 560 km s(-1). The first wave decelerated significantly after it passed through a filament channel. After the deceleration, the final propagation speeds of the wave were from 430 km s(-1) to 312 km s(-1). The second wave was found to appear after the first wave in the northwest side of the filament channel. Its wave front was more diffused and the speed was around 250 km s(-1), much slower than that of the first wave. Conclusions. The deformation of the first coronal wave was caused by the different speeds along different paths. The sudden deceleration implies that the refraction of the first wave took place at the boundary of the filament channel. The event provides evidence that the first coronal wave may be a coronal MHD shock wave, and the second wave may be the apparent propagation of the brightenings caused by successive stretching of the magnetic field lines.

Formation of Coronal Shock Waves

Numerical simulations of magnetosonic wave formation driven by an expanding cylindrical piston are performed to get better physical insight into the initiation and evolution of large-scale coronal waves. Several very basic initial configurations are employed to analyze intrinsic characteristics of the MHD wave formation that do not depend on specific properties of the environment. It turns out that these simple initial configurations result in piston/wave morphologies and kinematics that reproduce common characteristics of coronal waves. In the initial stage the wave and the expanding source-region cannot be clearly resolved. During the acceleration stage of the source-region inflation, the wave is driven by the piston expansion, so its amplitude and phase-speed increase, whereas the wavefront profile steepens. At a given point, a discontinuity forms in the wavefront profile. The time/distance required for the shock formation is shorter for a more impulsive source-region expansion. After the piston stops, the wave amplitude and phase-speed start decreasing. During the expansion, most of the source region becomes strongly rarified, which reproduces the coronal dimming left behind the eruption. On the other hand, the density increases at the source-region boundary, and stays enhanced even after the expansion stops, which might explain stationary brightenings that are sometimes observed at the edges of the erupted coronal structure. In addition, in the rear of the wave a weak density depletion develops, trailing the wave, which is sometimes observed as weak transient coronal dimming. Finally, we find a well defined relationship between the impulsiveness of the source-region expansion and the wave amplitude and phase speed. The results for the cylindrical piston are also compared with the outcome for a planar wave, to find out how different geometries affect the evolution of the wave.

COMPARISON BETWEEN PATH LENGTHS TRAVELED BY SOLAR ELECTRONS AND IONS IN GROUND-LEVEL ENHANCEMENT EVENTS

We have examined the Wind/3DP/SST electron and Wind/EPACT/LEMT ion data to investigate the path length difference between solar electrons and ions in the ground-level enhancement (GLE) events in solar cycle 23. Assuming that the onset time of metric type II or decameter-hectometric (DH) type III radio bursts is the solar release time of non-relativistic electrons, we have found that within an error range of plus or minus 10% the deduced path length of low-energy (approximately 27 keV) electrons from their release site near the Sun to the 1 AU observer is consistent with the ion path length deduced by Reames from the onset time analysis. In addition, the solar longitude distribution and IMF topology of the GLE events examined are in favor of the coronal mass ejection-driven shock acceleration origin of observed non-relativistic electrons.We have also found an increase of electron path lengths with increasing electron energies. The increasing rate of path lengths is correlated with the pitch angle distribution (PAD) of peak electron intensities locally measured, with a higher rate corresponding to a broader PAD. The correlation indicates that the path length enhancement is due to the interplanetary scattering experienced by first arriving electrons. The observed path length consistency implies that the maximum stable time of magnetic flux tubes, along which particles transport, could reach 4.8 hr.

CURRENT SHEET REGULATION OF SOLAR NEAR-RELATIVISTIC ELECTRON INJECTION HISTORIES

We present a sample of three large near-relativistic (>50 keV) electron events observed in 2001 by both the ACE and the Ulysses spacecraft, when Ulysses was at high-northern latitudes (>60 ◦ ) and close to 2 AU. Despite the large latitudinal distance between the two spacecraft, electrons injected near the Sun reached both heliospheric locations. All three events were associated with large solar flares, strong decametric type II radio bursts and accompanied by wide (>212 ◦ ) and fast (>1400 km s −1 ) coronal mass ejections (CMEs). We use advanced interplanetary transport simulations and make use of the directional intensities observed in situ by the spacecraft to infer the electron injection profile close to the Sun and the interplanetary transport conditions at both low and high latitudes. For the three selected events, we find similar interplanetary transport conditions at different heliolatitudes for a given event, with values of the mean free path ranging from 0.04 AU to 0.27 AU. We find differences in the injection profiles inferred for each spacecraft. We investigate the role that sector boundaries of the heliospheric current sheet (HCS) have on determining the characteristics of the electron injection profiles. Extended injection profiles, associated with coronal shocks, are found if the magnetic footpoints of the spacecraft lay in the same magnetic sector as the associated flare, while intermittent sparse injection episodes appear when the spacecraft footpoints are in the opposite sector or a wrap in the HCS bounded the CME structure.

The Two Sources of Solar Energetic Particles

Evidence for two different physical mechanisms for acceleration of solar energetic particles (SEPs) arose 50 years ago with radio observations of type III bursts, produced by outward streaming electrons, and type II bursts from coronal and interplanetary shock waves. Since that time we have found that the former are related to "impulsive" SEP events from impulsive flares or jets. Here, resonant stochastic acceleration, related to magnetic reconnection involving open field lines, produces not only electrons but 1000-fold enhancements of 3He/4He and of (Z>50)/O. Alternatively, in "gradual" SEP events, shock waves, driven out from the Sun by coronal mass ejections (CMEs), more democratically sample ion abundances that are even used to measure the coronal abundances of the elements. Sometimes residual impulsive suprathermal ions contribute to the seed population for shock acceleration, complicating the abundance picture, but this process has now been modeled theoretically. Initially, impulsive events define a point source on the Sun, selectively filling few magnetic flux tubes, while gradual events show broad acceleration that can fill half of the inner heliosphere, beginning when the shock reaches ~2 solar radii. Shock acceleration occurs as ions are scattered back and forth across the shock by resonant Alfven waves amplified by the accelerated protons themselves. These waves also can produce a streaming-limited maximum SEP intensity and plateau region upstream of the shock. Behind the shock lies the large expanse of the "reservoir", a spatially extensive trapped volume of uniform SEP intensities with invariant energy-spectral shapes where overall intensities decrease with time as the enclosing "magnetic bottle" expands adiabatically. These reservoirs now explain the slow intensity decrease that defines gradual events, once erroneously attributed solely to slow outward diffusion.

Two-stage acceleration of solar cosmic rays

On the basis of data from the Radio Solar Telescope Network (RSTN), as well as the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) and the WIND spacecraft, for the period from 1989 to 2006 covering 107 flare events, we investigated the relationship between the intensity of solar cosmic rays and parameters of continuum radio bursts (25–15400 MHz), as well as type II radio bursts in the meter and decahectometer wavelength ranges. Proton fluxes with energies Ep > 1−100 MeV were calculated with regard to a reduced heliolongitude. The maximum correlation between solar cosmic rays and solar parameters of microwave bursts was 0.80. Its value was no more than 0.40 for the drift rate of type II bursts and 0.70 for the compression rate of coronal shock waves. Based on linear regression equations, we estimated the contribution of coronal shock waves to the acceleration of protons. We found that major acceleration processes occur in the area of burst energy release and complimentary processes occur at the fronts of coronal shock waves. The contribution of the latter to the acceleration process increases significantly with proton energy.

On the Interplanetary Coronal Mass Ejection Shocks in the Vicinity of the Earth

We studied the relation between the near-Earth signatures of the interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) shocks such as sudden storms commencement (SSC), and their counterparts of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) observed near-Sun by solar and heliospheric observatory (SOHO)/large angle and spectrometric coronagraph (LASCO) coronagraph during 1996–2008. Our result showed that there is a good correlation between the travel time of the ICMEs shocks and their associated radial speeds. Also we have separated the ICME shocks into two groups according to their effective acceleration and deceleration. The results showed that the faster ICME shocks (with negative accelerations which decelerated by solar wind plasma) are more correlated to their associated travel time than those with positive accelerations.

Multiwavelength Study of a Solar Eruption from AR NOAA 11112: II. Large-Scale Coronal Wave and Loop Oscillation

We analyse multiwavelength observations of an M2.9/1N flare that occurred in AR NOAA 11112 on 16 October 2010. AIA 211 {\AA} EUV images reveal the presence of a faster coronal wave (decelerating from ~1390 to ~830 km/s) propagating ahead of a slower wave (decelerating from ~416 to ~166 km/s) towards the western limb. The dynamic radio spectrum from Sagamore Hill radio telescope shows the presence of metric type II radio burst, which reveals the presence of a coronal shock wave (speed~800 km/s). The speed of the faster coronal wave derived from AIA 211 {\AA} images is found to be comparable to the coronal shock speed. AIA 171 {\AA} high-cadence observations showed that a coronal loop, which was located at the distance of ~0.32 Rs to the west of the flaring region, started to oscillate by the end of the impulsive phase of the flare. The results indicate that the faster coronal wave may be the first driver of the transversal oscillations of coronal loop. As the slower wave passed through the coronal loop, the oscillations became even stronger. There was a plasmoid eruption observed in EUV and a white-light CME was recorded, having velocity of ~340-350 km/s. STEREO 195 {\AA} images show an EIT wave, propagating in the same direction of the lower-speed coronal wave observed in AIA, but decelerating from ~320 to ~254 km/s. These observations reveal the co-existence of both waves (i.e. coronal Moreton and EIT waves), and type II radio burst seems to be associated with the coronal Moreton wave.

Propagation of Fast Coronal Mass Ejections and Shock Waves Associated with Type II Radio-Burst Emission: An Analytic Study

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are large-scale eruptive events in the solar corona. Once they are expelled into the interplanetary (IP) medium, they propagate outwards and “evolve” interacting with the solar wind. Fast CMEs associated with IP shocks are a critical subject for space weather investigations. We present an analytic model to study the heliocentric evolution of fast CME/shock events and their association with type II radio-burst emissions. The propagation model assumes an early stage where the CME acts as a piston driving a shock wave; beyond this point the CME decelerates, tending to match the ambient solar wind speed and its shock decays. We use the shock speed evolution to reproduce type II radio-burst emissions. We analyse four fast CME halo events that were associated with kilometric type II radio bursts, and in-situ measurements of IP shock and CME signatures. The results show good agreement with the dynamic spectra of the type II frequency drifts and the in-situ measurements. This suggests that, in general, IP shocks associated with fast CMEs evolve as blast waves approaching 1 AU, implying that the CMEs do not drive their shocks any further at this heliocentric range.

RADIAL DEPENDENCE OF PEAK PROTON AND IRON ION FLUXES IN SOLAR ENERGETIC PARTICLE EVENTS: APPLICATION OF THE PATH CODE

The radial dependence of particle peak fluxes in large solar energetic particle (SEP) events is important in determining the potential impact of space weather hazards on space missions. Using the Particle Acceleration and Transport in the Heliosphere code, we model the acceleration and transport of protons and iron ions at evolving coronal mass ejection shocks propagating throughout the inner heliosphere from about 0.1 to 2.5 AU. An example shock with a compression ratio of 3.9 and a speed of 1000 km s{sup -1} close to the Sun is modeled using a two-dimensional MHD ZEUS code. The compression ratio and shock speed weakened to 2.3 and 630 km s{sup -1}, correspondingly, at 2 AU. Shocks with 15 Degree-Sign , 45 Degree-Sign , and 75 Degree-Sign angles between the upstream magnetic field and the shock normal were studied. The shock angle was kept constant throughout the simulation. Both gradual and impulsive events are studied. Diffusive shock acceleration is assumed at the shock and we use a total diffusion coefficient that includes a parallel diffusion coefficient which takes into account the upstream wave amplification, and a perpendicular diffusion coefficient which is based on the NonLinear Guiding Center theory. The transport of particles escapingmore » from the shock is modeled using a Monte Carlo approach. Time-intensity profiles for protons and iron ions are obtained. We analyzed the radial dependence of peak fluxes (J) for both protons and iron ions from 0.5 to 2 AU. We find that the functional dependence is softer than R {sup -3} and is about R {sup -2.9} to R {sup -1.8} in the energy range of 0.3-5 MeV nuc{sup -1}. Quasi-perpendicular shock showed a steeper radial dependence than a quasi-parallel shock. Mixed events show a softer radial dependence at energies above 500 keV nuc{sup -1} for iron ions and above 1 MeV for protons. The values of J(R) depend on seed particle composition, particle energy, shock obliquity, and the interplanetary turbulence level. Consequently, we advocate using SEP event-specific computer modeling rather than empirical formulae for future forecasting of the radiation environment throughout the heliosphere during large SEP events.« less

The Large Longitudinal Spread of Solar Energetic Particles During the 17 January 2010 Solar Event

We investigate multi-spacecraft observations of the January 17, 2010 solar energetic particle event. Energetic electrons and protons have been observed over a remarkable large longitudinal range at the two STEREO spacecraft and SOHO suggesting a longitudinal spread of nearly 360 degrees at 1AU. The flaring active region, which was on the backside of the Sun as seen from Earth, was separated by more than 100 degrees in longitude from the magnetic footpoints of each of the three spacecraft. The event is characterized by strongly delayed energetic particle onsets with respect to the flare and only small or no anisotropies in the intensity measurements at all three locations. The presence of a coronal shock is evidenced by the observation of a type II radio burst from the Earth and STEREO B. In order to describe the observations in terms of particle transport in the interplanetary medium, including perpendicular diffusion, a 1D model describing the propagation along a magnetic field line (model 1) (Dr\"oge, 2003) and the 3D propagation model (model 2) by (Dr\"oge et al., 2010) including perpendicular diffusion in the interplanetary medium have been applied, respectively. While both models are capable of reproducing the observations, model 1 requires injection functions at the Sun of several hours. Model 2, which includes lateral transport in the solar wind, reveals high values for the ratio of perpendicular to parallel diffusion. Because we do not find evidence for unusual long injection functions at the Sun we favor a scenario with strong perpendicular transport in the interplanetary medium as explanation for the observations.