Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic And Magnetic Imager Research Articles

Intensity contrast of solar network and faculae close to the solar limb, observed from two vantage points

Context. The brightness of faculae and network depends on the angle at which they are observed and the magnetic flux density. Close to the limb, the assessment of this relationship has until now been hindered by the increasingly lower signal in magnetograms. Aims. This preliminary study aims to highlight the potential of using simultaneous observations from different vantage points to better determine the properties of faculae close to the limb. Methods. We used data from the Solar Orbiter/Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (SO/PHI), and the Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI), recorded at an ∼60° angular separation of their lines of sight at the Sun. We used the continuum intensity observed close to the limb by SO/PHI and complemented it with the co-observed BLOS from SDO/HMI, originating closer to disc centre (as seen by SDO/HMI), thus avoiding the degradation of the magnetic field signal near the limb. Results. We derived the dependence of facular brightness in the continuum on disc position and magnetic flux density from the combined observations of SO/PHI and SDO/HMI. Compared with a single point of view, we were able to obtain contrast values reaching closer to the limb and to lower field strengths. We find the general dependence of the limb distance at which the contrast is maximum on the flux density to be at large in line with single viewpoint observations, in that the higher the flux density is, the closer the turning point lies to the limb. There is a tendency, however, for the maximum to be reached closer to the limb when determined from two vantage points. We note that due to the preliminary nature of this study, these results must be taken with caution. Conclusions. Our analysis shows that studies involving two viewpoints can significantly improve the detection of faculae near the solar limb and the determination of their brightness contrast relative to the quiet Sun.

Large-scale Spatial Cross-calibration of Hinode/SOT-SP and SDO/HMI

We investigate the cross-calibration of the Hinode/Solar Optical Telescope-Spectro-Polarimeter (SOT-SP) and Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) instrument metadata, specifically the correspondence of the scaling and pointing information. Accurate calibration of these data sets gives the correspondence needed by interinstrument studies and learning-based magnetogram systems, and is required for physically meaningful photospheric magnetic field vectors. We approach the problem by robustly fitting geometric models on correspondences between images from each instrument’s pipeline. This technique is common in computer vision, but several critical details are required when using scanning-slit spectrograph data like Hinode/SOT-SP. We apply this technique to data spanning a decade of the Hinode mission. Our results suggest corrections to the published Level 2 Hinode/SOT-SP data. First, an analysis on approximately 2700 scans suggests that the reported pixel size in Hinode/SOT-SP Level 2 data is incorrect by around 1%. Second, analysis of over 12,000 scans shows that the pointing information is often incorrect by dozens of arcseconds with a strong bias. Regression of these corrections indicates that thermal effects have caused secular and cyclic drift in Hinode/SOT-SP pointing data over its mission. We offer two solutions. First, direct coalignment with SDO/HMI data via our procedure can improve alignments for many Hinode/SOT-SP scans. Second, since the pointing errors are predictable, simple post-hoc corrections can substantially improve the pointing. We conclude by illustrating the impact of this updated calibration on derived physical data products needed for research and interpretation. Among other things, our results suggest that the pointing errors induce a hemispheric bias in estimates of radial current density.

Deep Learning Based Solar Flare Forecasting Model. II. Influence of Image Resolution

Due to the accumulation of solar observational data and the development of data-driven algorithms, deep learning methods are widely applied to build a solar flare forecasting model. Most of the works focus on how to design or select proper deep networks for the forecasting task. Nevertheless, the influence of image resolution on the learning based solar flare forecasting model has not been analyzed and discussed. In this Paper, we investigate the influence of the resolution of magnetograms on the accuracy of solar flare forecasting. We study the active regions by the Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) magnetograms from 2010 to 2019. Then, we downsample them to get a database containing active regions with several resolutions. Afterwards, three deep neural networks (i) AlexNet, (ii) ResNet-18, and (iii) SqueezeNet are implemented to evaluate the performance of solar flare forecasting compared to different resolutions of magnetogram. In experiments, we first did comparative experiments on our own simulated HMI database with different resolutions. Then we conducted experiments on two selected actual overlapping databases, Hinode–HMI and Michelson Doppler Imager–HMI, to reconfirm our conclusions. The experiment results show that all the selected deep learning networks are insensitive to the resolution to a certain extent. We visualized the regions of interest of the network from an interpretable perspective and found that the deep learning network pays more attention to the global features extracted from active regions that are not sensitive to local information in magnetograms.

White-light Continuum Observation of the Off-limb Loops of the SOL2017-09-10 X8.2 Flare: Temporal and Spatial Variations

Abstract Observations of the Sun’s off-limb white-light (WL) flares offer rare opportunities to study the energy release and transport mechanisms in flare loops. One of the best such events was SOL2017-09-10, an X8.2 flare that occurred near the Sun’s west limb on 2017 September 10 and produced a WL loop system lasting more than 60 minutes and reaching an altitude higher than 30 Mm. The event was well observed by a suite of ground- and space-based instruments, including the Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) that captured its off-limb loops in WL continuum near Fe i 6173 Å, and the Atmospheric Imager Assembly (SDO/AIA) that observed its ultraviolet (UV) and extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) counterparts. We found quasi-periodic pulsations in the WL and UV emissions at the flare loop-top with a period around 8.0 minutes. Each pulsation appears to have an EUV counterpart that occurs earlier in time and higher in altitude. Despite many similarities in the WL and UV images and light curves, the WL flux at the loop-top continues to grow for about 16 minutes while the UV fluxes gradually decay. We discuss the implication of these unprecedented observations on the understanding of the enigmatic off-limb WL flare emission mechanisms.

Modelling 3D magnetic networks in a realistic solar atmosphere

ABSTRACT The magnetic network extending from the photosphere (solar radius ≃ R⊙) to the lower corona ($\mathrm{ R}_\odot +10\, {\rm Mm}$) plays an important role in the heating mechanisms of the solar atmosphere. Here we develop further the models of the authors with realistic open magnetic flux tubes, in order to model more complicated configurations. Closed magnetic loops and combinations of closed and open magnetic flux tubes are modelled. These are embedded within a stratified atmosphere, derived from observationally motivated semi-empirical and data-driven models subject to solar gravity and capable of spanning from the photosphere up into the chromosphere and lower corona. Constructing a magnetic field comprising self-similar magnetic flux tubes, an analytic solution for the kinetic pressure and plasma density is derived. Combining flux tubes of opposite polarity, it is possible to create a steady background magnetic field configuration, modelling a solar atmosphere exhibiting realistic stratification. The result can be applied to the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory Michelson Doppler Imager (SOHO/MDI), Solar Dynamics Observatory Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) and other magnetograms from the solar surface, for which photospheric motions can be simulated to explore the mechanism of energy transport. We demonstrate this powerful and versatile method with an application to HMI data.

Detailed analysis of dynamic evolution of three Active Regions at the photospheric level before flare and CME occurrence

We present a combined analysis of the applications of the weighted horizontal magnetic gradient (denoted as WGM in Korsós et al. (2015)) method and the magnetic helicity tool (Berger and Field, 1984) employed for three active regions (ARs), namely NOAA AR 11261, AR 11283 and AR 11429. We analysed the time series of photospheric data from the Solar Dynamics Observatory taken between August 2011 and March 2012. During this period the three ARs produced a series of flares (eight M- and six X-class) and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). AR 11261 had four M-class flares and one of them was accompanied by a fast CME. AR 11283 had similar activities with two M- and two X-class flares, but only with a slow CME. Finally, AR 11429 was the most powerful of the three ARs as it hosted five compact and large solar flare and CME eruptions. For applying the WGM method we employed the Debrecen sunspot data catalogue, and, for estimating the magnetic helicity at photospheric level we used the Space-weather HMI Active Region Patches (SHARP’s) vector magnetograms from SDO/HMI (Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager). We followed the evolution of the components of the WGM and the magnetic helicity before the flare and CME occurrences. We found a unique and mutually shared behaviour, called the U-shaped pattern, of the weighted distance component of WGM and of the shearing component of the helicity flux before the flare and CME eruptions. This common pattern is associated with the decreasing-receding phases yet reported only known to be a necessary feature prior to solar flare eruption(s) but found now at the same time in the evolution of the shearing helicity flux. This result leads to the conclusions that (i) the shearing motion of photospheric magnetic field may be a key driver for solar eruption in addition to the flux emerging process, and that (ii) the found decreasing-approaching pattern in the evolution of shearing helicity flux may be another precursor indicator for improving the forecasting of solar eruptions.

A data-driven MHD model of the global solar corona within Multi-Scale Fluid-Kinetic Simulation Suite (MS-FLUKSS)

We have developed a data-driven magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model of the global solar corona which uses characteristically-consistent boundary conditions (BCs) at the inner boundary. Our global solar corona model can be driven by different observational data including Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) synoptic vector magnetograms together with the horizontal velocity data in the photosphere obtained by the time-distance helioseismology method, and the line-of-sight (LOS) magnetogram data obtained by HMI, Solar and Heliospheric Observatory/Michelson Doppler Imager (SOHO/MDI), National Solar Observatory/Global Oscillation Network Group (NSO/GONG) and Wilcox Solar Observatory (WSO). We implemented our model in the Multi-Scale Fluid-Kinetic Simulation Suite (MS-FLUKSS) – a suite of adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) codes built upon the Chombo AMR framework developed at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. We present an overview of our model, characteristic BCs, and two results we obtained using our model: A benchmark test of relaxation of a dipole field using characteristic BCs, and relaxation of an initial PFSS field driven by HMI LOS magnetogram data, and horizontal velocity data obtained by the time-distance helioseismology method using a set of non-characteristic BCs.

Effect of Foreshortening on Center-to-Limb Variations of Measured Acoustic Travel Times

We use data observed near the solar disk center by the Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) to mimic observations at high-latitude areas after applying geometric transform and projection. These data are then used to study how foreshortening affects the time–distance measurements of acoustic travel times. We find that foreshortening reduces the measured mean travel-times through altering the acoustic-power weighting in different harmonic degrees, but the level of reduction and the latitude dependence are not as strong as those measured from the observation data at the same latitude. Foreshortening is not found to be accountable for the systematic center-to-limb effect in the measured acoustic travel-time differences, which is an essential factor for a reliable inference of the Sun’s meridional-circulation profile. The differences in the acoustic power spectrum between the mimicked data and the observation data in high-latitude areas suggest that the optical spectrum-line formation height or convection cells in these areas may be the primary cause of the center-to-limb effect in helioseismic analyses.

Precursors of the solar X flare on march 29, 2014, in the active region NOAA 12017 based on microwave radiation and magnetographic data

Precursors of the strong solar flare X1.0 (according to the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) classification) recorded on March 29, 2014, in the active region (AR) 12017 are investigated. The precursors manifested themselves in the AR microwave radiation and its magnetographic characteristics. This work was carried out as part of the development of an observational database of precursors of large flares (those more powerful than class M5 according to the GOES classification) in different ARs based on an analysis of the microwave radiation and magnetographic characteristics of ARs. Further generalization and systematization of the identified precursors of strong solar flares makes it possible to move on to the development of methods for their forecasting. According to data from Solar Dynamics Observatory Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI), two days before the X flare a new magnetic flux emerged in the analyzed AR 12017 near the main spot of the group with a magnetic field sign opposite that of main spot field (formation of the δ configuration). The study of the evolution of the magnetic field gradient in the AR showed a sharp increase before the X flare, which reached its peak 8 h before the flare with a subsequent decrease before the flare. Analysis of the AR microwave radiation, which was carried out based on the results of multiwavelength multiazimuth (31 daily observations for 4 h with 8-minute intervals) spectral polarization observations of the Sun by the RATAN-600 in the range 1.65–6.0 cm for a few days before the flare, revealed the emergence and development of a microwave source over the region with the δ configuration two days before the X flare. The parameters of the radio-frequency radiation of this source make it possible to classify it as a “peculiar” microwave source that was discovered earlier by the RATAN-600 in a number of eruptive events 1–2 days before large X flares. It was found for the first time that the time variation of the intensity of the microwave source over the region with the δ configuration occurred similarly to the evolution of the magnetic field gradient in the AR.

Dynamics of Microwave Sources Associated with the Neutral Line and the Magnetic-Field Parameters of Sunspots as a Factor in Predicting Large Flares

We studied the evolution of five active regions (ARs) where strong X-class flares occurred in 2011 – 2012 (NOAA ARs 11158, 11166, 11263, 11283 and 11520). Our study focuses on the pre-flare phase of these ARs (during a few days before the flare) to reveal features in the microwave radiation and magnetic-field characteristics of the ARs that indicate that a powerful flare is about to take place. One well-developed AR (NOAA AR 11654) that did not produce large flares was also studied. We used daily multiwavelength spectral-polarization solar observations in the range of 1.65 – 6.0 cm made with the RATAN-600 radio telescope and data obtained by the Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI). Whenever X-class flares occurred, we found that a new compact microwave source developed that was associated with the neutral line of the photospheric magnetic field (neutral line associated source – NLS) above the place with highest gradient of magnetic field. In some cases this became predominant in radio emission of the AR one to two days before a large flare. No such source was detected in AR without a powerful flare. An analysis of magnetic-field characteristics of sunspots (based on SDO/HMI data) showed that the large X-flares we investigated occurred in ARs with high magnetic flux (∼ 1022 Mx) and with an increasing magnetic-field gradient. We first identified the positions of the developing microwave source (NLS) with the location of the large flare that was registered in the AR one to two days later. Radio characteristics and dynamics of NLS detected before large flares possibly reflect the place in the corona where the energy for flaring is stored. Thus, an early detection of a rapidly developing microwave source NLS and an increasing magnetic-field gradient can be used as a factor in predicting large flares.

Structure and evolution of solar supergranulation using SDO/HMI data

Context: Studying the motions on the solar surface is fundamental for understanding how turbulent convection transports energy and how magnetic fields are distributed across the solar surface. Aims: From horizontal velocity measurements all over the visible disc of the Sun and using data from the Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI), we investigate the structure and evolution of solar supergranulation. Methods: Horizontal velocity fields were measured by following the proper motions of solar granules using a newly developed version of the coherent structure tracking (CST) code. With this tool, maps of horizontal divergence were computed. We then segmented and identified supergranular cells and followed their histories by using spatio-temporal labelling. With this dataset we derived the fundamental properties of supergranulation, including their motion. Results: We find values of the fundamental parameters of supergranulation similar to previous studies: a mean lifetime of 1.5 days and a mean diameter of 25~Mm. The tracking of individual supergranular cells reveals the solar differential rotation and a poleward circulation trend of the meridional flow. The shape of the derived differential rotation and meridional flow does not depend on the cell size. If there is a background magnetic field, the diverging flows in supergranules are weaker. Conclusions: This study confirms that supergranules are suitable tracers that may be used to investigate the large-scale flows of the solar convection as long as they are detectable enough on the surface.

Interpreting the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) Multi-Height Velocity Measurements

The Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) filtergrams, taken at six wavelengths around the Fe I 6173.3 {\AA} line, contain information about the line-of-sight velocity over a range of heights in the solar atmosphere. Multi-height velocity inferences from these observations can be exploited to study wave motions and energy transport in the atmosphere. Using realistic convection simulation datasets provided by the STAGGER and MURaM codes, we generate synthetic filtergrams and explore several methods for estimating Dopplergrams. We investigate at which height each synthetic Dopplergram correlates most strongly with the vertical velocity in the model atmospheres. On the basis of the investigation, we propose two Dopplergrams other than the standard HMI-algorithm Dopplergram produced from HMI filtergrams: a line-center Dopplergram and an average-wing Dopplergram. These two Dopplergrams correlate most strongly with vertical velocities at the heights of 30 - 40 km above (line-center) and 30 - 40 km below (average-wing) the effective height of the HMI-algorithm Dopplergram. Therefore, we can obtain velocity information from two layers separated by about a half of a scale height in the atmosphere, at best. The phase shifts between these multi-height Dopplergrams from observational data as well as those from the simulated data are also consistent with the height-difference estimates in the frequency range above the photospheric acoustic cutoff frequency.

Hα Surges Initiated by Newly-emerging Satellite Magnetic Fields

On July 22, 2011 and in the active region NOAA 11259 there ap- peared the event of the ejection of solar atmospheric Hα surges. According to the full-disc Hα observations of the Big Bear Solar Observatory in United States, three consecutive surges at one and the same place in the north of the main spot of the active region were discovered. The trajectories of these three surges exhib- ited the figure of straight lines, and their integral configuration is like an inverted Eiffel Tower. The first two surges are quite similar, and in each of them there appeared two bright points in the northern part of the main spot. After several minutes, the surges appeared in the midst of bright points. When the bright- ness of the bright points attained the maximum value, the surges spouted out from the midst of bright points. And after reaching the maximum altitude, they quickly vanished. Before the ejection of the third surge took place, no bright points appeared. Besides, its maximal altitude is merely one half of that of the first two surges. Via a comparison with the SDO/HMI (Solar Dynamics Obser- vatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager) data of radial magnetic fields, it is found that in more than one hour before the appearance of the first surge there emerged bipolar magnetic fields in the region of ejection. Besides, in several min- utes before the ejection of each Hα surge the magnetic fluxes of positive polarity diminished. Via our analysis it is found that there appeared reconnections be- tween the newly emerging satellite magnetic fields and the preexisting magnetic fields in the spot, and this caused the continuous ejections of Hα surges.

CASE STUDY OF A MAGNETIC TRANSIENT IN NOAA 11429 OBSERVED BYSDO/HMI DURING THE M7.9 FLARE ON 2012 MARCH 13

NOAA 11429 was the source of an M7.9 X-ray flare at the western solar limb (N18? W63?) on 2012 March 13 at 17:12?UT. Observations of the line-of-sight magnetic flux and the Stokes I and V profiles from which it is derived were carried out by the Solar Dynamics Observatory Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) with a 45?s cadence over the full disk, at a spatial sampling of 0.''5. During flare onset, a transient patch of negative flux can be observed in SDO/HMI magnetograms to rapidly appear within the positive polarity penumbra of NOAA 11429. We present here a detailed study of this magnetic transient and offer interpretations as to whether this highly debated phenomenon represents a real change in the structure of the magnetic field at the site of the flare, or is instead a product of instrumental/algorithmic artifacts related to particular SDO/HMI data reduction techniques.

A Study of Connections Between Solar Flares and Subsurface Flow Fields of Active Regions

We investigate the connections between the occurrence of major solar flares and subsurface dynamic properties of active regions. For this analysis, we select five active regions that produced a total of 11 flares with peak X-ray flux intensity higher than M5.0. The subsurface velocity fields are obtained from time–distance helioseismology analysis using SDO/HMI (Solar Dynamics Observatory/Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager) Doppler observations, and the X-ray flux intensity is taken from GOES (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites). It is found that among the eight amplitude bumps in the evolutionary curves of subsurface kinetic helicity, five (62.5%) of them had a flare stronger than M5.0 occurring within 8 hours, either before or after the bumps. Another subsurface parameter is the Normalized Helicity Gradient Variance (NHGV), reflecting kinetic helicity spread in different depth layers; it also shows bumps near the occurrence of these solar flares. Although there is no one-to-one correspondence between the flare and the subsurface properties, these observational phenomena are worth further studies to better understand the flares’ subsurface roots, and to investigate whether the subsurface properties can be used for major flare forecasts.

Comparison of solar horizontal velocity fields from SDO/HMI and Hinode data

The measurement of the Sun's surface motions with a high spatial and temporal resolution is still a challenge. We wish to validate horizontal velocity measurements all over the visible disk of the Sun from Solar Dynamics Observatory/ Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (SDO/HMI) data. Horizontal velocity fields are measured by following the proper motions of solar granules using a newly developed version of the Coherent Structure Tracking (CST) code. The comparison of the surface flows measured at high spatial resolution (Hinode, 0.1 arcsec) and low resolution (SDO/HMI, 0.5 arcsec) allows us to determine corrections to be applied to the horizontal velocity measured from HMI white light data. We derive horizontal velocity maps with spatial and temporal resolutions of respectively 2.5 Mm and 30 min. From the two components of the horizontal velocity Vx and Vy measured in the sky plane and the simultaneous line of sight component from SDO/HMI dopplergrams v_D, we derive the spherical velocity components (Vr, Vtheta, Vphi). The azimuthal component Vphi gives the solar differential rotation with a high precision (+-0.037km/s) from a temporal sequence of only three hours. By following the proper motions of the solar granules, we can revisit the dynamics of the solar surface at high spatial and temporal resolutions from hours to months and years with the SDO data.