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The high-energy Sun - probing the origins of particle acceleration on our nearest star

Matthews, S.A; Reid, H.A.S.; Baker, D.; Bloomfield, D.S.; Browning, P.K.; Calcines, A.; Del Zanna, G.; Erdelyi, R.; Fletcher, L.; Hannah, I.G.; Jeffrey, N.; Klein, L.; Krucker, S.; Kontar, E.; Long, D.M.; MacKinnon, A.; Mann, G.; Mathioudakis, M.; Milligan, R.; Nakariakov, V.M.; Pesce-Rollins, M.; Shih, A.Y.; Smith, D.; Veronig, A.; Vilmer, N.

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Authors

S.A Matthews

H.A.S. Reid

D. Baker

D.S. Bloomfield

P.K. Browning

G. Del Zanna

R. Erdelyi

L. Fletcher

I.G. Hannah

N. Jeffrey

L. Klein

S. Krucker

E. Kontar

D.M. Long

A. MacKinnon

G. Mann

M. Mathioudakis

R. Milligan

V.M. Nakariakov

M. Pesce-Rollins

A.Y. Shih

D. Smith

A. Veronig

N. Vilmer



Abstract

As a frequent and energetic particle accelerator, our Sun provides us with an excellent astrophysical laboratory for understanding the fundamental process of particle acceleration. The exploitation of radiative diagnostics from electrons has shown that acceleration operates on sub-second time scales in a complex magnetic environment, where direct electric fields, wave turbulence, and shock waves all must contribute, although precise details are severely lacking. Ions were assumed to be accelerated in a similar manner to electrons, but γ-ray imaging confirmed that emission sources are spatially separated from X-ray sources, suggesting distinctly different acceleration mechanisms. Current X-ray and γ-ray spectroscopy provides only a basic understanding of accelerated particle spectra and the total energy budgets are therefore poorly constrained. Additionally, the recent detection of relativistic ion signatures lasting many hours, without an electron counterpart, is an enigma. We propose a single platform to directly measure the physical conditions present in the energy release sites and the environment in which the particles propagate and deposit their energy. To address this fundamental issue, we set out a suite of dedicated instruments that will probe both electrons and ions simultaneously to observe; high (seconds) temporal resolution photon spectra (4 keV – 150 MeV) with simultaneous imaging (1 keV – 30 MeV), polarization measurements (5–1000 keV) and high spatial and temporal resolution imaging spectroscopy in the UV/EUV/SXR (soft X-ray) regimes. These instruments will observe the broad range of radiative signatures produced in the solar atmosphere by accelerated particles.

Citation

Matthews, S., Reid, H., Baker, D., Bloomfield, D., Browning, P., Calcines, A., …Vilmer, N. (2022). The high-energy Sun - probing the origins of particle acceleration on our nearest star. Experimental Astronomy, 54, 335-360. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10686-021-09798-6

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Sep 23, 2021
Online Publication Date Nov 9, 2021
Publication Date 2022-12
Deposit Date Nov 23, 2021
Publicly Available Date May 18, 2023
Journal Experimental astronomy.
Print ISSN 0922-6435
Electronic ISSN 1572-9508
Publisher Springer
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 54
Pages 335-360
DOI https://doi.org/10.1007/s10686-021-09798-6
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1220831

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Copyright Statement
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