Abstract
Information concerning the coronal expansion is carried by solar wind heavy ions. Distinctly different energy-per-charge ion spectra are found in two classes of solar wind having the low kinetic temperatures necessary for E/q resolution of the ion species. Heavy ion spectra which can be resolved are most frequently observed in the low-speed interstream (IS) plasma found between high speed streams; the streams are thought to be coming from coronal holes. Although the sources of the IS plasma are uncertain, the heavy ion spectra found there contain identifiable peaks of O, Si, and Fe ions. Such spectra indicate that the IS ionization state of O is established in coronal gas at T ≈ 2.1 × 106 K while that of Fe is frozen in farther out at ∼1.5 × 106 K. On occasion anomalous spectra are found outside IS flows in solar wind with abnormally depressed local kinetic temperatures. The anomalous spectra contain Fe16+ ions, not usually found in IS flows, and the derived coronal freezing in temperatures are significantly higher; for two of the best cases values of ∼3.4 × 106 K were found for the O ions and ∼2.9 × 106 K for Fe ions. The coronal sources of some of these ionizationally hot flows are identified as solar flares. The appearance of abnormally depressed kinetic temperatures in solar wind coming from flare-heated coronal gas lends support to earlier speculation that flares can expel plasma enclosed in magnetic bottles or bubbles. In transit to 1 AU the gas is sufficiently isolated from the hot corona that it cools anomalously.
The Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory requests that the publisher identify this article as work performed under the auspices of the Department of Energy.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Allen, J. W. and Dupree, A. K.: 1969, Astrophys. J. 155, 27.
Asbridge, J. R., Bame, S. J., and Strong, I. B.: 1968, J. Geophys. Res. 73, 5777.
Bame, S. J.: 1972, in C. P. Sonett et al. (eds.), Solar Wind, NASA SP-308, p. 535.
Bame, S. J., Hundhausen, A. J., Asbridge, J. R., and Strong, I. B.: 1968a, Phys. Rev. Letters 20, 393.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Hundhausen, A. J., and Strong, I. B.: 1968b, J. Geophys. Res. 73, 5761.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Hundhausen, A. J., and Montgomery, M. D.: 1970, J. Geophys. Res. 75, 6360.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Feldman, W. C., and Kearney, P. D.: 1973, Am. Geophys. Union, EOS 54, 438.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Feldman, W. C., and Kearney, P. D.: 1974, Solar Phys. 35, 137.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Feldman, W. C., Montgomery, M. D., and Kearney, P. D.: 1975, Solar Phys. 43, 463.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Feldman, W. C., and Gosling, J. T.: 1977, J. Geophys. Res. 82, 1487.
Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., Feldman, W. C, Fenimore, E., and Gosling, J. T.: 1978, Trans. Am. Geophys. Union, EOS 59, 368.
Burlaga, L. F. and Ogilvie, K. W.: 1970, Astrophys. J. 159, 659.
Cattaneo, M. B., Formisano, V., Moreno, G., Palmiotto, F., Palutan, F., Saraceno, P.: 1971, Solar Phys. 17, 468.
Feldman, W. C., Asbridge, J. R., Bame, S. J., and Kearney, P. D.: 1974, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 1808.
Feldman, W. C., Asbridge, J. R., Bame, S. J., and Gosling, J. T.: 1977 in O. R. White (ed.), The Solar Output and its Variation, Colorado Associated Press, Boulder, p. 351.
Fenimore, E.: 1979, in preparation.
Fenimore, E., Asbridge, J. R., Bame, S. J., Feldman, W. C., and Gosling, J. T.: 1978, Trans. Am. Geophys. Union, EOS 59, 368.
Geiss, J., Buhler, F., Cerutti, H., and Eberhardt, P.: 1972, NASA SP-289, 15-1.
Gosling, J. T., Pizzo, V., and Bame, S. J.: 1973, J. Geophys. Res. 78, 2001.
Gosling, J. T., Hildner, E., MacQueen, R. M., Munro, R. H., Poland, A. I., and Ross, C. L.: 1974, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 4581.
Grunwaldt, H.: 1976, Space Research XVI, 681.
Heinemann, M. A. and Siscoe, G. L.: 1974, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 1349.
Hirshberg, J.: 1973, Rev. Geophys. Space Phys. 11, 115.
Hirshberg, J., Alksne, A., Colburn, D. S., Bame, S. J., and Hundhausen, A. J.: 1970, J. Geophys. Res. 75, 1.
Hirshberg, J., Bame, S. J., and Robbins, D. E.: 1972, Solar Phys. 23, 467.
Hirshberg, J., Nakagawa, Y., and Wellck, R. E.: 1974, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 3726.
Hundhausen, A. J.: 1972, in C. P. Sonett et al. (eds.), Solar Wind, NASA SP-308, p. 393.
Hundhausen, A. J.: 1977, J. B. Zirker (ed.), in Coronal Holes and High Speed Wind Streams, Colorado Associated University Press, p. 225.
Hundhausen, A. J., Gilbert, H. E., and Bame, S. J.: 1968a, Astrophys. J. 152, L3.
Hundhausen, A. J., Gilbert, H. E., and Bame, S. J.: 1968b, J. Geophys. Res. 73, 5485.
Hundhausen, A. J., Bame, S. J., Asbridge, J. R., and Sydoriak, S. J.: 1970, J. Geophys. Res. 75, 4643.
Jacobs, V. L., Davis, J., Kepple, P. C., and Blaha, M.: 1977, Astrophys. J. 211, 605.
Jordan, C.: 1969, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 142, 501.
Jordan, C.: 1970, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 148, 17.
Krieger, A. S., Timothy, A. F., and Roelof, E. C.: 1973, Solar Phys. 29, 505.
Krieger, A. S., Timothy, A. F., Vaiana, G. S., Lazarus, A. J., and Sullivan, J. D.: 1974, in C. T. Russell (ed.), Solar Wind Three, p. 132, University of California Press, Los Angeles.
Mewe, R.: 1972, Solar Phys. 22, 459.
Montgomery, M. D., Asbridge, J. R., Bame, S. J., and Feldman, W. C.: 1974, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 3103.
Newkirk, G., Jr.: 1967, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 5, 213.
Nolte, J. T., Krieger, A. S., Timothy, A. F., Gold, R. E., Roelof, E. C., Vaiana, G., Lazarus, A. J., Sullivan, J. D., and McIntosh, P. S.: 1976, Solar Phys. 46, 303.
Ogilvie, K. W., Burlaga, L. F., and Wilkerson, T. D.: 1968, J. Geophys. Res. 73, 6809.
Ogilvie, K. W. and Burlaga, L. F.: 1974, J. Geophys. Res. 79, 2324.
Sheeley, N. R. Jr., Harvey, J. W., and Feldman, W. C.: 1976, Solar Phys. 49, 271.
Strong, I. B., Asbridge, J. R., Bame, S. J., Heckman, H. H., and Hundhausen, A. J.: 1966, Phys. Rev. Letters 16, 631.
Withbroe, G. L.: 1976, Harvard College Observatory Preprint Series No. 524.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
By acceptance of this article, the publisher recognizes that the U.S. Government retains a nonexclusive, royalty-free license to publish or reproduce the published form of this contribution, or to allow others to do so, for U.S. Government purposes.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bame, S.J., Asbridge, J.R., Feldman, W.C. et al. Solar wind heavy ions from flare-heated coronal plasma. Sol Phys 62, 179–201 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00150143
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00150143