Spatial variation of energy transport mechanisms within solar flare ribbons

Solar flares release a tremendous amount of magnetic energy that subsequently manifests in several forms; the bulk of this energy is transported through the Sun’s atmosphere and explosively heats the chromosphere. While hard X-ray observations have pointed to flare-accelerated electrons as a primary means by which energy is transported following flares, alternative processes undoubtedly act alongside, or even instead of, those energetic electrons. To shed light on this we analysed flare-optimized, high-cadence Solar Orbiter observations. Footpoints from two flare ribbons were observed by the Spectral Imaging of the Coronal Environment (SPICE) instrument. Curiously, those footpoints exhibited contrasting behaviour: one had short-lived yet strong decreases in the Lyman β/Lyman γ line intensity ratio, whereas the other exhibited a more prolonged, moderate dip in that ratio. These observations were compared to synthetic spectra from radiation hydrodynamic simulations of flares driven by various energy transport mechanisms. This revealed that one footpoint was driven by energetic particle precipitation, while the other was driven by enhanced thermal heat flux. The implication is that energetic particles do not dominate along the entirety of flare ribbons. Critically, we must now focus on understanding where, when and why different mechanisms dominate in solar flare energy transport.

Schlagwörter

Fachgebiet (DDC)

520 - Astronomie, Kartografie

Projekt

Veranstaltung

Startdatum der Ausstellung

Enddatum der Ausstellung

Startdatum der Konferenz

Enddatum der Konferenz

Datum der letzten Prüfung

ISBN

ISSN

2397-3366

Sprache

Englisch

Während FHNW Zugehörigkeit erstellt

Ja

Zukunftsfelder FHNW

Publikationsstatus

Veröffentlicht

Begutachtung

Peer-Review der ganzen Publikation

Open Access-Status

Hybrid

Lizenz

Zitation

Kerr, G. S., Krucker, S., Allred, J. C., Rodriguez-Gomez, J. M., Inglis, A. R., Ryan, D. F., Hayes, L. A., Milligan, R. O., Kowalski, A. F., Plowman, J., Young, P. R., Kucera, T. A., & Brosius, J. W. (2026). Spatial variation of energy transport mechanisms within solar flare ribbons. Nature Astronomy. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-025-02747-9

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