The Distance to the Heliospheric VLF Emission Region

Two major episodes of heliospheric VLF emissions near 3 kHz have been observed by the Voyager spacecraft in 1983-1984 and 1992-1993. This higher-frequency component is apparently triggered by solar wind transients with sufficiently large spatial extents and energies to continue to propagate as shocks in the heliosheath. Entrainment of previously unshocked material and changed flow conditions in the heliosheath both tend to slow the shock propagation. The shock evolution is not self-similar. Rather, it is intermediate to two blast-wave similarity solutions in the moving solar wind frame. In one solution the shock moves as time to the 2/3 power and in the other as time to the 4/5 power. Using these models, the shock/Forbush decrease observed at Voyager 2 in September, 1991 and the turn-on of the 1992 emission is consistent with an emission region distance of approx. 130 AU (assuming no additional slowing of the shock in the heliosheath). If the termination shock was at approx. 70 AU when the transient shock collided with it, the true distance to the source region was probably closer to approx. 115 AU

The effect of ‘noise’ on estimates of the elastic thickness of the continental lithosphere by the coherence method

We model the lithosphere as a uniform elastic plate overlying an inviscid fluid and loaded with both surface and subsurface fractal loads to generate synthetic topography and gravity data. To simulate data having low (topographic) signal to (gravity) noise ratio we use an algebraically larger exponent for the subsurface load in the spectral synthesis fractal algorithm.The gravity power spectrum then decays less rapidly than that of topography, the spectra resembling those for central Australia. We find that the coherence method using multitaper spectral estimation yields significant underestimates of plate thickness for both low and normal signal-to-noise ratio data, unless the data window is larger than several times the true flexural wavelength. We quantify this bias for the parameters used here and apply it as a correction to an effective elastic thickness estimate for central Australia, obtaining a value of 115 25 km

Innovative interstellar explorer

An interstellar "precursor" mission has been under discussion in the scientific community for at least 30 years. Fundamental scientific questions about the interaction of the Sun with the interstellar medium can only be answered with in situ measurements that such a mission can provide. The Innovative Interstellar Explorer (IIE) and its use of Radioisotope Electric Propulsion (REP) is being studied under a NASA "Vision Mission" grant. Speed is provided by a combination of a high-energy launch, using current launch vehicle technology, a Jupiter gravity assist, and long-term, low-thrust, continuous acceleration provided by an ion thruster running off electricity provided by advanced radioisotope electric generators. A payload of ten instruments with an aggregate mass of ~35 kg and requiring ~30 W has been carefully chosen to address the compelling science questions. The nominal 20-day launch window opens on 22 October 2014 followed by a Jupiter gravity assist on 5 February 2016. The REP system accelerates the spacecraft to a "burnout" speed of 7.8 AU per year at 104 AU on 13 October 2032 (Voyager 1's current speed is ~3.6 AU/yr). The spacecraft will return at least 500 bits per second from at least 200 AU ~30 years after launch. Additional (backup) launch opportunities occur every 13 months to early 2018. In addition to addressing basic heliospheric science, the mission will ensure continued information on the far-heliospheric galactic cosmic ray population after the Voyagers have fallen silent and as the era of human Mars exploration begins

Small, Low-energy, Dispersive Solar Energetic Particle Events Observed by Parker Solar Probe

The Energetic Particle Instrument–Low Energy (EPI-Lo) experiment has detected several weak, low-energy (~30–300 keV nucleon⁻¹) solar energetic particle (SEP) events during its first two closest approaches to the Sun, providing a unique opportunity to explore the sources of low-energy particle acceleration. As part of the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun (IS⊙IS) suite, EPI-Lo was designed to investigate the physics of energetic particles; however, in the special lowest-energy "time-of-flight only" product used in this study, it also responds to solar photons in a subset of approximately sunward-looking apertures lacking special light-attenuating foils. During the first three perihelia, in a frame rotating with the Sun, PSP undergoes retrograde motion, covering a 17° heliographic longitudinal range three times during the course of the ~11-day perihelion passes, permitting a unique spatial and temporal study into the location, correlation, and persistence of previously unmeasurable SEPs. We examine the signatures of these SEPs (during the first PSP perihelion pass only) and the connection to possible solar sources using remote observations from the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), the Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory (STEREO), and the ground-based Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG). The orientation of the Sun relative to STEREO, SDO, and GONG makes such identifications challenging, but we do have several candidates, including an equatorial coronal hole at a Carrington longitude of ~335°. To analyze observations from EPI-Lo, which is a new type of particle instrument, we examine instrumental effects and provide a preliminary separation of the ion signal from the photon background

Biomechanics of predator–prey arms race in lion, zebra, cheetah and impala

The fastest and most manoeuvrable terrestrial animals are found in savannah habitats, where predators chase and capture running prey. Hunt outcome and success rate are critical to survival, so both predator and prey should evolve to be faster and/or more manoeuvrable. Here we compare locomotor characteristics in two pursuit predator–prey pairs, lion–zebra and cheetah–impala, in their natural savannah habitat in Botswana. We show that although cheetahs and impalas were universally more athletic than lions and zebras in terms of speed, acceleration and turning, within each predator–prey pair, the predators had 20% higher muscle fibre power than prey, 37% greater acceleration and 72% greater deceleration capacity than their prey. We simulated hunt dynamics with these data and showed that hunts at lower speeds enable prey to use their maximum manoeuvring capacity and favour prey survival, and that the predator needs to be more athletic than its prey to sustain a viable success rate

Additive opportunistic capture explains group hunting benefits in African wild dogs

African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) are described as highly collaborative endurance pursuit hunters based on observations derived primarily from the grass plains of East Africa. However, the remaining population of this endangered species mainly occupies mixed woodland savannah where hunting strategies appear to differ from those previously described. We used high-resolution GPS and inertial technology to record fine-scale movement of all members of a single pack of six adult African wild dogs in northern Botswana. The dogs used multiple short-distance hunting attempts with a low individual kill rate (15.5%), but high group feeding rate due to the sharing of prey. Use of high-level cooperative chase strategies (coordination and collaboration) was not recorded. In the mixed woodland habitats typical of their current range, simultaneous, opportunistic, short-distance chasing by dogs pursuing multiple prey (rather than long collaborative pursuits of single prey by multiple individuals) could be the key to their relative success in these habitats

Observations of the 2019 April 4 Solar Energetic Particle Event at the Parker Solar Probe

A solar energetic particle event was detected by the Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun (IS⊙IS) instrument suite on Parker Solar Probe (PSP) on 2019 April 4 when the spacecraft was inside of 0.17 au and less than 1 day before its second perihelion, providing an opportunity to study solar particle acceleration and transport unprecedentedly close to the source. The event was very small, with peak 1 MeV proton intensities of ~0.3 particles (cm² sr s MeV)⁻¹, and was undetectable above background levels at energies above 10 MeV or in particle detectors at 1 au. It was strongly anisotropic, with intensities flowing outward from the Sun up to 30 times greater than those flowing inward persisting throughout the event. Temporal association between particle increases and small brightness surges in the extreme-ultraviolet observed by the Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory, which were also accompanied by type III radio emission seen by the Electromagnetic Fields Investigation on PSP, indicates that the source of this event was an active region nearly 80° east of the nominal PSP magnetic footpoint. This suggests that the field lines expanded over a wide longitudinal range between the active region in the photosphere and the corona

Energetic Particle Increases Associated with Stream Interaction Regions

The Parker Solar Probe was launched on 2018 August 12 and completed its second orbit on 2019 June 19 with perihelion of 35.7 solar radii. During this time, the Energetic Particle Instrument-Hi (EPI-Hi, one of the two energetic particle instruments comprising the Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun, IS⊙IS) measured seven proton intensity increases associated with stream interaction regions (SIRs), two of which appear to be occurring in the same region corotating with the Sun. The events are relatively weak, with observed proton spectra extending to only a few MeV and lasting for a few days. The proton spectra are best characterized by power laws with indices ranging from −4.3 to −6.5, generally softer than events associated with SIRs observed at 1 au and beyond. Helium spectra were also obtained with similar indices, allowing He/H abundance ratios to be calculated for each event. We find values of 0.016–0.031, which are consistent with ratios obtained previously for corotating interaction region events with fast solar wind ≤ 600 km s⁻¹. Using the observed solar wind data combined with solar wind simulations, we study the solar wind structures associated with these events and identify additional spacecraft near 1 au appropriately positioned to observe the same structures after some corotation. Examination of the energetic particle observations from these spacecraft yields two events that may correspond to the energetic particle increases seen by EPI-Hi earlier

Solar Energetic Particles Produced by a Slow Coronal Mass Ejection at ∼0.25 au

We present an analysis of Parker Solar Probe (PSP) IS⊙IS observations of ~30–300 keV n⁻¹ ions on 2018 November 11 when PSP was about 0.25 au from the Sun. Five hours before the onset of a solar energetic particle (SEP) event, a coronal mass ejection (CME) was observed by STEREO-A/COR2, which crossed PSP about a day later. No shock was observed locally at PSP, but the CME may have driven a weak shock earlier. The SEP event was dispersive, with higher energy ions arriving before the lower energy ones. Timing suggests the particles originated at the CME when it was at ~7.4R_⊙. SEP intensities increased gradually from their onset over a few hours, reaching a peak, and then decreased gradually before the CME arrived at PSP. The event was weak, having a very soft energy spectrum (−4 to −5 spectral index). The earliest arriving particles were anisotropic, moving outward from the Sun, but later, the distribution was observed to be more isotropic. We present numerical solutions of the Parker transport equation for the transport of 30–300 keV n⁻¹ ions assuming a source comoving with the CME. Our model agrees well with the observations. The SEP event is consistent with ion acceleration at a weak shock driven briefly by the CME close to the Sun, which later dissipated before arriving at PSP, followed by the transport of ions in the interplanetary magnetic field