Preliminary Results on Irradiance Measurements from Lyra and Swap

International audienceThe first and preliminary results of the photometry of Large Yield Radiometer (LYRA) and Sun Watcher using Active Pixel system detector and Image Processing (SWAP) onboard PROBA2 are presented in this paper. To study the day-to-day variations of LYRA irradiance, we have compared the LYRA irradiance values (observed Sun as a star) measured in Aluminum filter channel (171 Å-500 Å) with spatially resolved full-disk integrated intensity values measured with SWAP (174 Å) and Ca II K 1 Å index values (ground-based observations from NSO/Sac Peak) for the period from 01 April 2010 to 15 Mar 2011. We found that there is a good correlation between these parameters. This indicates that the spatial resolution of SWAP complements the high temporal resolution of LYRA. Hence SWAP can be considered as an additional radiometric channel. Also the K emission index is the integrated intensity (or flux) over a 1 Å band centered on the K line and is proportional to the total emission from the chromosphere; this comparison clearly explains that the LYRA irradiance variations are due to the various magnetic features, which are contributing significantly. In addition to this we have made an attempt to segregate coronal features from full-disk SWAP images. This will help to understand and determine the actual contribution of the individual coronal feature to LYRA irradiance variations

HiRISE - High-Resolution Imaging and Spectroscopy Explorer - ultrahigh resolution, interferometric and external occulting coronagraphic science

Recent solar physics missions have shown the definite role of waves and magnetic fields deep in the inner corona, at the chromosphere-corona interface, where dramatic and physically dominant changes occur. HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging and Spectroscopy Explorer), the ambitious new generation ultra-high resolution, interferometric, and coronagraphic, solar physics mission, proposed in response to the ESA Voyage 2050 Call, would address these issues and provide the best-ever and most complete solar observatory, capable of ultra-high spatial, spectral, and temporal resolution observations of the solar atmosphere, from the photosphere to the corona, and of new insights of the solar interior from the core to the photosphere. HiRISE, at the L1 Lagrangian point, would provide meter class FUV imaging and spectro-imaging, EUV and XUV imaging and spectroscopy, magnetic fields measurements, and ambitious and comprehensive coronagraphy by a remote external occulter (two satellites formation flying 375 m apart, with a coronagraph on a chaser satellite). This major and state-of-the-art payload would allow us to characterize temperatures, densities, and velocities in the solar upper chromosphere, transition zone, and inner corona with, in particular, 2D very high resolution multi-spectral imaging-spectroscopy, and, direct coronal magnetic field measurement, thus providing a unique set of tools to understand the structure and onset of coronal heating. HiRISE’s objectives are natural complements to the Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter-type missions. We present the science case for HiRISE which will address: i) the fine structure of the chromosphere-corona interface by 2D spectroscopy in FUV at very high resolution; ii) coronal heating roots in the inner corona by ambitious externally-occulted coronagraphy; iii) resolved and global helioseismology thanks to continuity and stability of observing at the L1 Lagrange point; and iv) solar variability and space climate with, in addition, a global comprehensive view of UV variability

The New Solar Shape and Oscillations Telescope (NSSOT) Experiment for SOLARNET

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A Very High Resolution Vision for Solar Physics: Interferometry & Spectral-Imaging in the Far Ultraviolet

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Multi-aperture Instantaneous Interferometric Imaging of Extended and Moving Objects by Phase Optimized Spatial Filtering

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Multi-aperture Instantaneous Interferometric Imaging of Extended and Moving Objects by Phase Optimized Spatial Filtering

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Low orbit high resolution solar physics with the Solar Interferometer

International audienceFollowing several years of design studies of Solar Interferometers (mainly for Space Missions), we have reached a very complete and mature mechanical and optical concept, as well as a comprehensive image reconstruction scenario. Furthermore, we demonstrated recently, on a laboratory representative breadboard —but also directly on the Sun—the feasibility and performances of the cophasing of two telescopes on extended objects. This definitively proves the validity of the pupil plane synchronous detection technique (applied to an extended object: the Sun) that we proposed and developed since 1988, These recent results really open the possibility to use and discover from solar interferometers either on ground or in Space. With a 1 meter baseline and 5 telescopes of 25 cm or so, permanent spatial resolution of 0.1″ on a 30″ field-of-view can be reached from the ground in the visible while 0.02″ could be achieved in the far UV, from Space, all with an adjustable spectral bandwidth of 0.01 to 10 nm

SOLARNET: a UV, FUV, EUV, XUV high resolution imaging, spectro-imaging and spectroscopy mission.

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The solar diameter is most probably constant over the solar cycle

International audienceWe analyzed 7 years of filtregrams data (150000 photograms and magnetograms) of the SOHO/MDI experiment. We used the maximum possible sampling compatible with full frame recording, carefully avoiding any suspicious filtregram. Going further than the previous analysis of Emilio et al. (Ap. J. 543, 2000) and Kuhn et al. (Ap. J. 613, 2004) we better corrected for changes in optical aberrations and, along Turmon et al. (Ap. J., 568, 396, 2002), we reduced radius measurement errors by identifying active regions from magnetograms and by avoiding radius measurements herein. We found that, within the limit of our noise level uncertainties (8 to 9 mas), the solar diameter is compatible with constancy over the half cycle investigated. Our results confirm the reanalysis of the 7 years of MDI data of Antia (Ap. J. 590, 2003), with a completely different method since using the ultra-precise frequency variation of the f-modes (fundamental modes linked to the diameter), who found (carefully removing the yearly Earth induced variations and avoiding the SOHO data gap of 1999) that the diameter is constant over the half solar cycle (radius variation are less than 0.6 km, 0.8 mas -nothing over noise level). We can conclude, along Antia, that: "If a careful analysis is performed, then it turns out that there is no evidence for any variation in the solar radius." There were no theoretical reasons for large solar radius variations and there is no observational evidence for them with consistent space observations made with 3 different approaches

SOLARNET: a UV, FUV, EUV, XUV high resolution imaging, spectro-imaging and spectroscopy mission.

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