The Sun as an X-ray Star: III. Flares

Abstract

In previous works we have developed a method to convert solar X-ray data, collected with the Yohkoh/SXT, into templates of stellar coronal observations. Here we apply the method to several solar flares, for comparison with stellar X-ray flares. Eight flares, from weak (GOES class C5.8) to very intense ones (X9) are selected as representative of the flaring Sun. The emission measure distribution vs. temperature, EM(T), of the flaring regions is derived from Yohkoh/SXT observations in the rise, peak and decay of the flares. The EM(T) is rather peaked and centered around $T \approx 10^7$ K for most of the time. Typically, it grows during the rise phase of the flare, and then it decreases and shifts toward lower temperatures during the decay, more slowly if there is sustained heating. The most intense flare we studied shows emission measure even at very high temperature ($T \approx 10^8$ K). Time-resolved X-ray spectra both unfiltered and filtered through the instrumental responses of the non-solar instruments ASCA/SIS and ROSAT/PSPC are then derived. Synthesized ASCA/SIS and ROSAT/PSPC spectra are generally well fitted with single thermal components at temperatures close to that of the EM(T) maximum, albeit two thermal components are needed to fit some flare decays. ROSAT/PSPC spectra show that solar flares are in a two-orders of magnitude flux range ($10^6 - 10^8$ erg cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$) and a narrow PSPC hardness ratio range, however higher than that of typical non-flaring solar-like stars.