Long-term (50 years) measurements of cosmic ray fluxes in the atmosphere

Since the middle of 1957 till present time the group of researchers of P.N. Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences has carried out the regular balloon borne measurements of charged particle fluxes in the atmosphere. The measurements are performed at polar (northern and southern) and middle latitudes and cover the interval of heights from the ground level up to 30–35 km. Standard detectors of particles (gas-discharged counters) have been used. More than 80,000 measurements of cosmic ray fluxes in the atmosphere have been performed to the present time. In the data analysis the geomagnetic field and the Earth’s atmosphere are used as cosmic ray spectrometers.     

太阳质子事件警报

采用人工神经网络预报方法,利用太阳耀斑的日面位置、X射线辐射的峰值流量及其上升时间、2695MHz和8800MHz微波辐射的半积分流量等5个物理参量,提出了一个新的太阳质子事件警报方案,预报太阳质子事件的发生及其流量和时间．该方案在本文检验中达到93．75％的预报准确率．     

The dynamics of the solar radiative zone

The picture of the solar radiative zone is evolving quickly. This review is separated in two parts. We first recall how the two powerful probes of the solar interior, namely the neutrinos and helioseismology have scrutinized the microscopic properties of the solar radiative plasma. Recent observations stimulate today complementary activities beyond the standard stellar model through theoretical modeling of angular momentum transport by rotation, internal waves or (and) by magnetic fields to get access to the dynamical motions of this important region of the Sun. So in the second part, we summarize the first impact of such processes on the radiative zone.     

Comparison of solar soft X-ray irradiance from broadband photometers to a high spectral resolution rocket observation

The solar soft X-ray (XUV; 1–30 nm) radiation is highly variable on all time scales and strongly affects the ionosphere and upper atmosphere of Earth, Mars, as well as the atmospheres and surfaces of other planets and moons in the solar system; consequently, the solar XUV irradiance is important for atmospheric studies and for space weather applications. While there have been several recent measurements of the solar XUV irradiance, detailed understanding of the solar XUV irradiance, especially its variability during flares, has been hampered by the lack of high spectral resolution measurements in this wavelength range. The conversion of the XUV photometer signal into irradiance requires the use of a solar spectral model, but there has not been direct validation of these spectral models for the XUV range. For example, the irradiance algorithm for the XUV Photometer System (XPS) measurements uses multiple CHIANTI spectral models, but validation has been limited to other solar broadband measurements or with comparisons of the atmospheric response to solar variations. A new rocket observation of the solar XUV irradiance with 0.1 nm resolution above 6 nm was obtained on 14 April 2008, and these new results provide a first direct validation of the spectral models used in the XPS data processing. The rocket observation indicates very large differences for the spectral model for many individual emission features, but the differences are significantly smaller at lower resolution, as expected since the spectral models are scaled to match the broadband measurements. While this rocket measurement can help improve a spectral model for quiet Sun conditions, many additional measurements over a wide range of solar activity are needed to fully address the spectral model variations. Such measurements are planned with a similar instrument included on NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), whose launch is expected in 2009.     

Feasibility study of LEO,GEO and Molniya orbit based satellite solar power station for some identified sites in India

The analysis of satellite solar power station (SSPS) is carried out for some specified locations (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru) in India and consequently the performance of the system is evaluated for geostationary earth orbit (GEO) based SSPS, low earth orbit (LEO) based SSPS and Molniya (quasi geostationary) orbit based SSPS for sites located at different latitudes. The analysis of power; received energy over a year and weight of the rectenna array for the same beam intensity showed varied results for Molniya orbit based SSPS, LEO based SSPS and GEO based SSPS. The power delivered by the LEO SSPS was highest which indicated that this SSPS may be efficient for the short term power requirement. However, it is observed from the results of the energy received over a year that the GEO based system is suitable for base load power plant as it is capable of delivering constant energy through out a year. Further, the weight of the rectenna and hence the space required for ground station for same power output is smallest for Molniya orbit based system for a range of rectenna array radius considered. It is thus envisaged that the Molniya orbit based system would be a better choice for commercial use of SSPS. These findings may help for judicious selection of satellite orbit and ground station location for placing the satellite for SSPS for various applications.     

Monte Carlo calibration of the response of the University of Chicago’s Cosmic Ray Nuclei Experiment (CRNE) on IMP-8 to electrons above 0.5 MeV

Modern instrument-simulation techniques offer the possibility of increasing the scientific yield from archival space datasets. In this paper, we report on a simulation of the electron response of the University of Chicago’s Cosmic Ray Nuclei Experiment (CRNE) instrument on the IMP-8 satellite. IMP-8/CRNE returned data from 1973 to 2006. The CRNE particle telescope was designed to measure the isotopic composition of Galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) nuclei and has also been used in many studies of protons and ions above 10 MeV/nucleon from solar energetic particle (SEP) events. But CRNE also functions as a highly-capable detector for solar electrons above 0.5 MeV, an energy range that has not been extensively studied. Utilization of the CRNE electron data has heretofore been limited by the fact that CRNE was never calibrated for electrons. We have therefore used the GEANT4 Monte Carlo simulation package to model the CRNE response to electrons and (separately) protons for multiple energies and incident angles. The results were used to compute the energy- and angle-dependence of the effective area and the energy-dependence of the geometric factor. The response to protons, which was already well understood, was used to verify the mass model, the simulation settings, and the post-processing software. Our simulation of the IMP-8/CRNE electron response now allows analysis of hundreds of relativistic solar electron events observed by CRNE over the years, including studies of evolution of electron energy spectra with high time resolution. We show examples of these results and briefly discuss potential applications to future scientific investigations.     

Solar particle precipitation into the polar atmosphere and their dependence on hemisphere and local time

The precipitation of solar energetic particles, protons as well as electrons, at high latitudes is commonly assumed to be homogeneous across both polar caps. Using Low-Earth Orbit POES (Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellites) we determine particle penetration ratios into the polar atmosphere for protons ranging from about 0.1 MeV to 500 MeV and for electrons spanning about one order of magnitude in energy with a maximum of 0.3 MeV. Based on power law fits for the POES spectrum we show, that for energies interesting for middle and lower atmosphere chemistry, particle flux over the poles is comparable in magnitude to flux at the geostationary orbit or at L1 in interplanetary space. The time period under study are the solar energetic particle (SEP) event series of October/November 2003 and January 2005.     

F2 layer characteristics and electrojet strength over an equatorial station

The data presented in this work describes the diurnal and seasonal variation in hmF2, NmF2, and the electrojet current strength over an African equatorial station during a period of low solar activity. The F2 region horizontal magnetic element H revealed that the Solar quiet Sq(H) daily variation rises from early morning period to maximum around local noon and falls to lower values towards evening. The F2 ionospheric current responsible for the magnetic field variations is inferred to build up at the early morning hours, attaining maximum strength around 1200 LT. The Sq variation across the entire months was higher during the daytime than nighttime. This is ascribed to the variability of the ionospheric parameters like conductivity and winds structure in this region. Seasonal daytime electrojet (EEJ) current strength for June solstice, March and September equinoxes, respectively had peak values ranging within 27–35 nT (at 1400 LT) , 30–40 nT (at 1200 LT) and 35–45 nT (at 1500 LT). The different peak periods of the EEJ strength were attributed to the combined effects of the peak electron density and electric field. Lastly, the EEJ strength was observed to be higher during the equinoxes than the solstice period.     

Initial results of the evaluation of IRI hmF2 performance for minima 22–23 and 23–24

The performance of the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) in predicting the height of the maximum of electron density (hmF2) has been evaluated for similar geomagnetic latitudes stations in the northern hemisphere (NH) and southern hemisphere (SH), and for the last two minima. As truth-sites, the digisonde stations of Millstone Hill (42.6°N, 288.5°E), USA, and Grahamstown (33.3°S, 26.5°E), South Africa, were considered. A monthly averaged diurnal variation was obtained from all the observations and model output in the months studied, and the corresponding difference was also calculated. For this initial study data from summer and winter in the NH and SH were selected for the solstice comparison, and October data for both stations were used to represent equinox conditions. The choice of these periods depended on data availability and quality. The results show that for the earlier minimum in 1996, in general IRI hmF2 values are in reasonable agreement with the observations. The exceptions are October and December in the SH, where IRI hmF2 tends to high, particularly on the dayside, and also July for which the daytime measured values tend to be larger than the IRI ones. For the recent minimum in 2008, IRI tends to over-estimate the hmF2 in most of the observations. The results support the general assertion that thermospheric temperatures were cooler during the last solar minimum as a consequence of an unusually low, and extended, minimum in solar extreme-ultraviolet flux, and in response to continually increasing long-term trend in anthropogenic carbon dioxide. The cooler temperatures not only decrease density at a fixed height, but also make the corresponding contraction of the atmosphere lower the height of the F-region peak.     

Calculation of the effect of opacity in the solar spectral lines of carbon ions

In this paper, using the intensity ratio of carbon ions emission lines, we determined the optical depths at the line center of the CI at about 165.7 nm, CII at about 133.5 nm, CIII at about 117.5 nm and CIV at about 154.9 nm emission lines by escape factor treatment. For CI and CII emission lines, we discuss the intensity ratio of two lines arising from the common upper levels; while for CIII and CIV emission lines, we discuss the intensity ratio of two lines arising from the common lower levels. By introducing the measured abundance of carbon and the results of ionization balance calculations, we make an estimate of the line-of-sight physical thickness of the regions of carbon ions. This discussion will provide some results in the discussion of opacity on the solar ultraviolet (UV) or extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) spectrum.