Understanding how solar eruptions begin and evolve through the solar atmosphere
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Mullard Space Science Laboratory
Abstract
Solar eruptions are among the most powerful events occurring in our solar system and have several well-defined signatures; solar flares, observed as huge bursts of radiation, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), observed as massive bubbles of plasma hurled into space and global wave- pulses that travel through the solar atmosphere, traversing the entire solar surface in less than an hour. The exact physical processes leading to these eruptions and how they interact with the surrounding solar atmosphere remain ambiguous and subject to intensive research. Understanding these processes will provide a unique insight into the basic physics underpinning the evolution of the Sun and its atmosphere. Even more importantly, it will greatly improve our ability to predict the geo--effectiveness of CMEs (i.e., their effects on the near-Earth environment; a phenomenon known as space weather), providing the requisite warning time for protecting sensitive electronics and power distribution networks in both space-based and ground-based assets. Current models designed to explain CMEs invoke the concept of a flux rope; a twisted bundle of magnetic field which is formed in the low solar atmosphere by the reconfiguration of the solar magnetic field through the convergence, collision and subsequent disappearance of small-scale opposite polarity features. Cool, dense plasma can often become trapped within these flux ropes as they form, and are observed as filaments in chromospheric H-alpha observations. While the processes involved in the development of these filamentary flux ropes are well established, how these structures suddenly become unstable and erupt catastrophically are not as well understood. The aim of this project is to investigate the processes involved in the initiation and early evolution of solar eruptions. This will involve examining the relationship between the different forces at play in the development of the filament; the magnetic field overlying the flux rope and the mass of the filament holding it down and the magnetic pressure of the flux rope forcing it up. By identifying the point at which this equilibrium no longer holds, it may be possible to predict when a filament will erupt. The evolution of this filament through the low solar atmosphere can then be studied to understand the role played by the local and global magnetic field in determining the ultimate direction of the associated CME. This project will use observations from the Solar Dynamics Observatory, Hinode's EUV Imaging Spectrometer and the Interface Region Imaging Spectrometer
Organisations
Publications
Jenkins J
(2019)
Modeling the Effect of Mass-draining on Prominence Eruptions
in The Astrophysical Journal
Jenkins JM
(2018)
Understanding the Role of Mass-Unloading in a Filament Eruption.
in Solar physics
Long D
(2019)
Quantifying the Relationship between Moreton-Ramsey Waves and "EIT Waves" Using Observations of Four Homologous Wave Events
in The Astrophysical Journal
Long D
(2018)
Plasma Evolution within an Erupting Coronal Cavity
in The Astrophysical Journal
Schwartz P
(2019)
2D non-LTE modelling of a filament observed in the H a line with the DST/IBIS spectropolarimeter
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Studentship Projects
Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ST/N504488/1 | 01/10/2015 | 31/03/2021 | |||
1741115 | Studentship | ST/N504488/1 | 01/10/2016 | 31/03/2020 | Jack Jenkins |
Description | MSSL Travel Grant Feb 2018 |
Amount | £400 (GBP) |
Organisation | University College London |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2018 |
End | 03/2018 |
Description | RAS Travel Grant Feb 2018 |
Amount | £800 (GBP) |
Organisation | Royal Astronomical Society |
Sector | Academic/University |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2018 |
End | 06/2018 |
Description | Zirin Scholarship to attend TESS in Virginia, USA |
Amount | $750 (USD) |
Organisation | American Geophysical Union |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United States |
Start | 05/2018 |
End | 05/2018 |
Description | Collaboration with group at NSO and CSUN |
Organisation | California State University, Northridge |
Country | United States |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | I have contributed understanding about solar filaments |
Collaborator Contribution | Partners have contributed understanding and expertise in the operation of ground-based telescopes. |
Impact | Currently working on a publication |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Collaboration with group at NSO and CSUN |
Organisation | National Solar Observatory (NSO) |
Country | United States |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | I have contributed understanding about solar filaments |
Collaborator Contribution | Partners have contributed understanding and expertise in the operation of ground-based telescopes. |
Impact | Currently working on a publication |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Collaboration with researchers at Observatoire de Paris on a publication |
Organisation | Observatory of Paris |
Country | France |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | I led the team that included members from Observatoire de Paris to the publication of a paper on the role of mass-draining on the eruption of solar prominences. |
Collaborator Contribution | The partners in this collaboration contributed mathematical skills to the project along with substantial contextual background material. |
Impact | One published paper in the Astrophysical Journal |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Czech and Slovak Academy of Sciences |
Organisation | Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic |
Department | Astronomical Institute of Czech Academy of Sciences |
Country | Czech Republic |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaborated on a research project that resulted in a paper |
Collaborator Contribution | Collaborated on a research project that resulted in a paper |
Impact | A peer-reviewed journal article |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Czech and Slovak Academy of Sciences |
Organisation | Slovak Academy of Sciences |
Country | Slovakia |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Collaborated on a research project that resulted in a paper |
Collaborator Contribution | Collaborated on a research project that resulted in a paper |
Impact | A peer-reviewed journal article |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Participated in the International Day of Light 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | A large event was put on at the Institute for Education at UCL in which high-school students were invited to take part. Here, they were exposed to scientific fields across astronomy and taught about how light plays a role in each case. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |