Flare Energy Release at the Magnetic Field Polarity Inversion Line During M1.2 Solar Flare of 2015 March 15. II. Investigation of Photospheric Electric Current and Magnetic Field Variations Using HMI 135-second Vector Magnetograms

This work is a continuation of Paper I [Sharykin et al., 2018] devoted to analysis of nonthermal electron dynamics and plasma heating in the confined M1.2 class solar flare SOL2015-03-15T22:43 revealing energy release in the highly sheared interacting magnetic loops in the low corona, above the polarity inversion line (PIL). The scope of the present work is to make the first extensive quantitative analysis of the photospheric magnetic field and photospheric vertical electric current (PVEC) dynamics in the confined flare region near the PIL using new vector magnetograms obtained with the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) with high temporal resolution of 135 s. Data analysis revealed sharp changes of the magnetic structure and PVEC associated with the flare onset near the PIL. It was found that the strongest plasma heating and electron acceleration were associated with the largest increase of the magnetic reconnection rate, total PVEC and effective PVEC density in the flare ribbons. Observations and non-linear force-free field (NLFFF) extrapolations showed that the magnetic field structure around the PIL is consistent with the tether-cutting magnetic reconnection (TCMR) geometry. We gave qualitative interpretation of the observed dynamics of the flare ribbons, magnetic field and PVEC, and electron acceleration, within the TCMR scenario

Azimuth ambiguity removal and non-linear force-free extrapolation of near-limb magnetic regions

Possibilities in principle for satisfactory removal of the 180-azimuthal ambiguity in the transverse field of vector magnetograms and the extrapolation of magnetic fields independently of their position on the solar disk are shown. Revealed here is an exact correspondence between the estimated field and the nonpotential loop structure on the limb. The Metropolis's algorithm modified to work in spherical geometry is used to resolve the azimuthal ambiguity. Based on a version of the optimization method from Rudenko and Myshyakov (2009), we use corrected magnetograms as boundary conditions for magnetic field extrapolation in the nonlinear force-free approximation

Evidence of the Relationship between the Emerging Magnetic Fields, Electric Currents, and Solar Flares Observed on May 10, 2012

We have analyzed multi-wavelength observations and magnetic-field data for the solar flare of May 10, 2012 (04:18 UT) and have detected a sign inversion of the signal in the line-of-sight magnetic measurements in the umbra of a small spot. This effect is associated, at least partly, with the emergence of a new magnetic field. Almost at the same time, a burst of hard X-rays was recorded, and a wave in the vacuum ultraviolet (EUV) range (a "sunquake") was generated due to the impact of the disturbance in the energy release range on the photosphere. At the beginning of the event, a sigmoid flare was recorded, but it did not spread, as it usually does, along the polarity inversion (neutral) line. SDO/HMI full-vector measurements were used to extrapolate the AR 11476 magnetic field to the corona, and the distribution of vertical currents $j_z$ in the photosphere was obtained. The distribution of currents in the active region shows that the relationship between them and the occurrence of flares is very intricate. We have corroborated that the expected "ideal" behavior of the current system before and after the flare (e.g., see (Sharykin and Kosovichev, 2015)) is observed only in the sigmoid region. The results obtained were compared with the observations of two other flares recorded in this AR on the same day, one of which was similar to the flare under discussion and the other was of different type. Our results confirm that the formation and eruption of large-scale magnetic flux ropes in sigmoid flares are associated with the shear motions in the photosphere and the emergence of twisted magnetic tubes, as well as with the subsequent development of the torus instability.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures; corrected versio

Flare SOL2012-07-06: on the origin of the circular polarization reversal between 17 GHz and 34 GHz

The new generations of multiwavelength radioheliographs with high spatial resolution will employ microwave imaging spectropolarimetry to recover flare topology and plasma parameters in the flare sources and along the wave propagation paths. The recorded polarization depends on the emission mechanism and emission regime (optically thick or thin), the emitting particle properties, and propagation effects. Here, we report an unusual flare, SOL2012-07-06T01:37, whose optically thin gyrosynchrotron emission of the main source displays an apparently ordinary mode sense of polarization in contrast to the classical theory that favors the extraordinary mode. This flare produced copious nonthermal emission in hard X-rays and in high-frequency microwaves up to 80 GHz. It is found that the main flare source corresponds to an interaction site of two loops with greatly different sizes. We have investigated the three possible known reasons of the circular polarization sense reversal - mode coupling, positron contribution, and the effect of beamed angular distribution. We excluded polarization reversal due to contribution of positrons because there was no relevant response in the X-ray emission. We find that a beam-like electron distribution can produce the observed polarization behavior, but the source thermal density must be much higher than the estimate from to the X-ray data. We conclude that the apparent ordinary wave emission in the optically thin mode is due to radio wave propagation across the quasi-transverse (QT) layer. The abnormally high transition frequency (above 35 GHz) can be achieved reasonably low in the corona where the magnetic field value is high and transverse to the line of sight. This places the microwave source below this QT layer, i.e. very low in the corona.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figure

Probing Twisted Magnetic Field Using Microwave Observations in an M Class Solar Flare on 11 February, 2014

This work demonstrates the possibility of magnetic field topology investigations using microwave polarimetric observations. We study a solar flare of GOES M1.7 class that occurred on 11 February, 2014. This flare revealed a clear signature of spatial inversion of the radio emission polarization sign. We show that the observed polarization pattern can be explained by nonthermal gyrosynchrotron emission from the twisted magnetic structure. Using observations of the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager, Nobeyama Radio Observatory, Radio Solar Telescope Network, and Solar Dynamics Observatory, we have determined the parameters of nonthermal electrons and thermal plasma and identified the magnetic structure where the flare energy release occurred. To reconstruct the coronal magnetic field, we use nonlinear force-free field (NLFFF) and potential magnetic field approaches. Radio emission of nonthermal electrons is simulated by the GX Simulator code using the extrapolated magnetic field and the parameters of nonthermal electrons and thermal plasma inferred from the observations; the model radio maps and spectra are compared with observations. We have found that the potential magnetic field approach fails to explain the observed circular polarization pattern; on the other hand, the Stokes $V$ map is successfully explained by assuming nonthermal electrons to be distributed along the twisted magnetic structure determined by the NLFFF extrapolation approach. Thus, we show that the radio polarization maps can be used for diagnosing the topology of the flare magnetic structures where nonthermal electrons are injected

A Challenging Solar Eruptive Event of 18 November 2003 and the Causes of the 20 November Geomagnetic Superstorm. III. Catastrophe of the Eruptive Filament at a Magnetic Null Point and Formation of an Opposite-Handedness CME

Our analysis in Papers I and II (Grechnev et al., 2014, Solar Phys. 289, 289 and 1279) of the 18 November 2003 solar event responsible for the 20 November geomagnetic superstorm has revealed a complex chain of eruptions. In particular, the eruptive filament encountered a topological discontinuity located near the solar disk center at a height of about 100 Mm, bifurcated, and transformed into a large cloud, which did not leave the Sun. Concurrently, an additional CME presumably erupted close to the bifurcation region. The conjectures about the responsibility of this compact CME for the superstorm and its disconnection from the Sun are confirmed in Paper IV (Grechnev et al., Solar Phys., submitted), which concludes about its probable spheromak-like structure. The present paper confirms the presence of a magnetic null point near the bifurcation region and addresses the origin of the magnetic helicity of the interplanetary magnetic clouds and their connection to the Sun. We find that the orientation of a magnetic dipole constituted by dimmed regions with the opposite magnetic polarities away from the parent active region corresponded to the direction of the axial field in the magnetic cloud, while the pre-eruptive filament mismatched it. To combine all of the listed findings, we come to an intrinsically three-dimensional scheme, in which a spheromak-like eruption originates via the interaction of the initially unconnected magnetic fluxes of the eruptive filament and pre-existing ones in the corona. Through a chain of magnetic reconnections their positive mutual helicity was transformed into the self-helicity of the spheromak-like magnetic cloud.Comment: 30 pages, 14 figures. Accepted for publication in Solar Physics. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11207-014-0536-

Investigation of Relationship Between High-Energy X-ray Sources and Photospheric and Helioseismic Impacts of X1.8 Solar Flare of October 23, 2012

The X-class solar flare of October 23, 2012, generated continuum photospheric emission and a strong helioseismic wave ("sunquake") that points to an intensive energy release in the dense part of the solar atmosphere. We study properties of the energy release with high temporal and spatial resolutions, using photospheric data from the Helioseismic Magnetic Imager (HMI) onboard Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), and hard X-ray observations made by the Ramaty High-Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI). For this analysis we use level-1 HMI data (filtergrams), obtained by scanning the Fe I line (6731~\AA) with the time cadence of $\sim 3.6$ s and spatial resolution of $\sim 0.5^{\prime\prime}$ per pixel. It is found that the photospheric disturbances caused by the flare spatially coincide with the region of hard X-ray emission, but are delayed by $\lesssim 4$ seconds. This delay is consistent with predictions of the flare hydrodynamics RADYN models. However, the models fail to explain the magnitude of variations observed by the HMI. The data indicate that the photospheric impact and helioseismic wave might be caused by the electron energy flux substantially higher than that in the current flare radiative hydrodynamic models.Comment: 23 pages, 7 figure

Flare Energy Release in the Magnetic Field Polarity Inversion Line During M1.2 Solar Flare of March 15, 2015. Paper I. Onset of Plasma Heating and Electrons Acceleration

We present the study of SOL2015-03-15 M1.2 flare, revealing acceleration of electrons and plasma heating in the sheared twisted magnetic structure in the polarity inversion line (PIL). The scope is to make the analysis of nonthermal electrons dynamics and plasma heating in the highly stressed magnetic loops interacting in the PIL by using X-ray, microwave, ultraviolet, and optical observations. It is found that the most probable scenario for the energy release in the PIL is the tether-cutting magnetic reconnection between the low-lying (3 Mm above the photosphere) magnetic loops within a twisted magnetic flux rope. Energetic electrons with the hardest spectrum were appeared at the onset of plasma heating up to the super-hot temperature of 40 MK. These electrons are localized in a thin magnetic channel with width of around 0.5 Mm with high average magnetic field of about 1200 G. The plasma beta in the super-hot region is less than 0.01. The estimated density of accelerated electrons is about 10^9 cm^-3 that is much less than the super-hot plasma density. The energy density flux of non-thermal electrons is estimated up to 3x10^12 ergs cm^-2s^-1 that is much higher than in the currently available radiative hydrodynamic models. These results revealed that one need to develop new self-consisting flare models reproducing 3D magnetic reconnection in the PIL with strong magnetic field, spatial filamentation of energy release, formation of high energy density populations of nonthermal electrons and appearance of the super-hot plasma

Behaviour of oscillations in loop structures above active regions

In this study we combine the multiwavelength ultraviolet -- optical (Solar Dynamics Observatory, SDO) and radio (Nobeyama Radioheliograph, NoRH) observations to get further insight into space-frequency distribution of oscillations at different atmospheric levels of the Sun. We processed the observational data on NOAA 11711 active region and found oscillations propagating from the photospheric level through the transition region upward into the corona. The power maps of low-frequency (1--2 mHz) oscillations reproduce well the fan-like coronal structures visible in the Fe ix 171A line. High frequency oscillations (5--7 mHz) propagate along the vertical magnetic field lines and concentrate inside small-scale elements in the umbra and at the umbra-penumbra boundary. We investigated the dependence of the dominant oscillation frequency upon the distance from the sunspot barycentre to estimate inclination of magnetic tubes in higher levels of sunspots where it cannot be measured directly, and found that this angle is close to 40 degrees above the umbra boundaries in the transition region

Twin Null-Point-Associated Major Eruptive Three-Ribbon Flares with Unusual Microwave Spectra

On 23 July 2016 after 05:00\,UTC, the first 48-antenna stage of the Siberian Radioheliograph detected two flares of M7.6 and M5.5 GOES importance that occurred within half an hour in the same active region. Their multi-instrument analysis reveals the following. The microwave spectra were flattened at low frequencies and the spectrum of the stronger burst had a lower turnover frequency. Each flare was eruptive, emitted hard X-rays and gamma-rays exceeding 800\,keV, and had a rare three-ribbon configuration. An extended hard X-ray source associated with a longest middle ribbon was observed in the second flare. The unusual properties of the microwave spectra are accounted for by a distributed multi-loop system in an asymmetric magnetic configuration that our modeling confirms. Microwave images did not to resolve compact configurations in these flares that may also be revealed incompletely in hard X-ray images because of their limited dynamic range. Being apparently simple and compact, non-thermal sources corresponded to the structures observed in the extreme ultraviolet. In the scenario proposed for two successive three-ribbon eruptive flares in a configuration with a coronal-null region, the first eruption causes a flare and facilitates the second eruption that also results in a flare.Comment: 23 pages, 9 figures, "This is a pre-print of an article which will be published in Solar Physics