arXiv subjects

Sijie Yu

Publications and source records attributed to Sijie Yu.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2023

Spectral Observations and Modeling of a Solar White-light Flare Observed by CHASE

The heating mechanisms of solar white-light flares remain unclear. We present an X1.0 white-light flare on 2022 October 2 (SOL2022-10-02T20:25) observed by the Chinese \ha\ Solar Explorer (CHASE) that provides two-dimensional spectra in the visible light for the full solar disk with a seeing-free condition. The flare shows a prominent enhancement of $\sim$40\% in the photospheric \fe\ line at 6569.2 Å, and the nearby continuum also exhibits a maximum enhancement of $\sim$40\%. For the continuum near the \fe\ line at 6173 Å from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), it is enhanced up to $\sim$20\%. At the white-light kernels, the \fe\ line at 6569.2 Å has a symmetric Gaussian profile that is still in absorption and the H$α$ line at 6562.8 Å displays a very broad emission profile with a central reversal plus a red or blue asymmetry. The white-light kernels are co-spatial with the microwave footpoint sources observed by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA) and the time profile of the white-light emission matches that of the hard X-ray emission above 30 keV from the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) on Fermi. These facts indicate that the white-light emission is qualitatively related to a nonthermal electron beam. We also perform a radiative hydrodynamic simulation with the electron beam parameters constrained by the hard X-ray observations from Fermi/GBM. The result reveals that the white-light enhancement cannot be well explained by a pure electron-beam heating together with its induced radiative backwarming but may need additional heating sources such as \alfven\ waves.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2023

The Solar Origin of an In Situ Type III Radio Burst Event

Solar type III radio bursts are generated by beams of energetic electrons that travel along open magnetic field lines through the corona and into interplanetary space. However, understanding the source of these electrons and how they escape into interplanetary space remains an outstanding topic. Here we report multi-instrument, multi-perspective observations of an interplanetary type III radio burst event shortly after the second perihelion of the Parker Solar Probe (PSP). This event was associated with a solar jet that produced an impulsive microwave burst event recorded by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA). The type III burst event also coincided with the detection of enhanced in situ energetic electrons recorded by both PSP at 0.37 AU and WIND at 1 AU, which were located very closely on the Parker spiral longitudinally. The close timing association and magnetic connectivity suggest that the in situ energetic electrons originated from the jet's magnetic reconnection region. Intriguingly, microwave imaging spectroscopy results suggest that the escaping energetic electrons were injected into a large opening angle of about 90 degrees, which is at least nine times broader than the apparent width of the jet spire. Our findings provide an interpretation for the previously reported, longitudinally broad spatial distribution of flare locations associated with prompt energetic electron events and have important implications for understanding the origin and distribution of energetic electrons in the interplanetary space.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2023

Born this way: thin disc, thick disc, and isotropic spheroid formation in FIRE-2 Milky-Way-mass galaxy simulations

We investigate the formation of Milky-Way-mass galaxies using FIRE-2 LCDM cosmological zoom-in simulations by studying the orbital evolution of stars formed in the main progenitor of the galaxy, from birth to the present day. We classify in situ stars as isotropic spheroid, thick-disc, and thin-disc according to their orbital circularities and show that these components are assembled in a time-ordered sequence from early to late times, respectively. All simulated galaxies experience an early phase of bursty star formation that transitions to a late-time steady phase. This transition coincides with the time that the inner CGM virializes. During the early bursty phase, galaxies have irregular morphologies and new stars are born on radial orbits; these stars evolve into an isotropic spheroidal population today. The bulk of thick-disc stars form at intermediate times, during a clumpy-disc ``spin-up'' phase, slightly later than the peak of spheroid formation. At late times, once the CGM virializes and star formation ``cools down," stars are born on circular orbits within a narrow plane. Those stars mostly inhabit thin discs today. Broadly speaking, stars with disc-like or spheroid-like orbits today were born that way. Mergers onto discs and secular processes do affect kinematics in our simulations, but play only secondary roles in populating thick-disc and in situ spheroid populations at z=0. The age distributions of spheroid, thick disc, and thin disc populations scale self-similarly with the steady-phase transition time, which suggests that morphological age dating can be linked to the CGM virialization time in galaxies.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2023

The need for focused, hard X-ray investigations of the Sun

Understanding the nature of energetic particles in the solar atmosphere is one of the most important outstanding problems in heliophysics. Flare-accelerated particles compose a huge fraction of the flare energy budget; they have large influences on how events develop; they are an important source of high-energy particles found in the heliosphere; and they are the single most important corollary to other areas of high-energy astrophysics. Despite the importance of this area of study, this topic has in the past decade received only a small fraction of the resources necessary for a full investigation. For example, NASA has selected no new Explorer-class instrument in the past two decades that is capable of examining this topic. The advances that are currently being made in understanding flare-accelerated electrons are largely undertaken with data from EOVSA (NSF), STIX (ESA), and NuSTAR (NASA Astrophysics). This is despite the inclusion in the previous Heliophysics decadal survey of the FOXSI concept as part of the SEE2020 mission, and also despite NASA's having invested heavily in readying the technology for such an instrument via four flights of the FOXSI sounding rocket experiment. Due to that investment, the instrumentation stands ready to implement a hard X-ray mission to investigate flare-accelerated electrons. This white paper describes the scientific motivation for why this venture should be undertaken soon.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

Fine structures of radio bursts from flare star AD Leo with FAST observations

Radio bursts from nearby active M-dwarfs have been frequently reported and extensively studied in solar or planetary paradigms. Whereas, their sub-structures or fine structures remain rarely explored despite their potential significance in diagnosing the plasma and magnetic field properties of the star. Such studies in the past have been limited by the sensitivity of radio telescopes. Here we report the inspiring results from the high time-resolution observations of a known flare star AD Leo with the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). We detected many radio bursts in the two days of observations with fine structures in the form of numerous millisecond-scale sub-bursts. Sub-bursts on the first day display stripe-like shapes with nearly uniform frequency drift rates, which are possibly stellar analogs to Jovian S-bursts. Sub-bursts on the second day, however, reveal a different blob-like shape with random occurrence patterns and are akin to solar radio spikes. The new observational results suggest that the intense emission from AD Leo is driven by electron cyclotron maser instability which may be related to stellar flares or interactions with a planetary companion.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2023

Multifrequency microwave imaging of weak transients from the quiet solar corona

Understanding the dynamics of the quiet solar corona is important for answering key questions including the coronal heating problem. Multiple studies have suggested small-scale magnetic reconnection events may play a crucial role. These reconnection events are expected to involve acceleration of electrons to suprathermal energies, which can then produce nonthermal observational signatures. However, due to the paucity of sensitive high-fidelity observations capable of probing these nonthermal signatures, most studies were unable to quantify their nonthermal nature. Here we use joint radio observations from the Very Large Array (VLA) and the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA) to detect transient emissions from the quiet solar corona in the microwave (GHz) domain. While similar transients have been reported in the past, their nonthermal nature could not be adequately quantified due to the unavailability of broadband observations. Using a much larger bandwidth available now with the VLA and EOVSA, in this study, we are able to quantify the nonthermal energy associated with two of these transients. We find that the total nonthermal energy associated with some of these transients can be comparable to or even larger than the total thermal energy of a nanoflare, which underpins the importance of nonthermal energy in the total coronal energy budget.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2023

Radio Studies of the Middle Corona: Current State and New Prospects in the Next Decade

The "middle corona," defined by West et al. (2022) as the region between ~1.5-6 solar radii, is a critical transition region that connects the highly structured lower corona to the outer corona where the magnetic field becomes predominantly radial. At radio wavelengths, remote-sensing of the middle corona falls in the meter-decameter wavelength range where a critical transition of radio emission mechanisms occurs. In addition, plasma properties of the middle corona can be probed by trans-coronal radio propagation methods including radio scintillation and Faraday rotation techniques. Together they offer a wealth of diagnostic tools for the middle corona, complementing current and planned missions at other wavelengths. These diagnostics include unique means for detecting and measuring the magnetic field and energetic electrons associated with coronal mass ejections, mapping coronal shocks and electron beam trajectories, as well as constraining the plasma density, magnetic field, and turbulence of the "young" solar wind. Following a brief overview of pertinent radio diagnostic methods, this white paper will discuss the current state of radio studies on the middle corona, challenges to obtaining a more comprehensive picture, and recommend an outlook in the next decade. Our specific recommendations for advancing the middle coronal sciences from the radio perspective are: (1) Prioritizing solar-dedicated radio facilities in the ~0.1-1 GHz range with broadband, high-dynamic-range imaging spectropolarimetry capabilities. (2) Developing facilities and techniques to perform multi-perspective, multiple lines-of-sight trans-coronal radio Faraday Rotation measurements.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

Radio Imaging Spectropolarimetry of CMEs and CME Progenitors

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are the most important drivers of space weather. Central to most CMEs is thought to be the eruption of a bundle of highly twisted magnetic field lines known as magnetic flux ropes. A comprehensive understanding of CMEs and their impacts hence requires detailed observations of physical parameters that lead to the formation, destabilization, and eventual eruption of the magnetic flux ropes. Recent advances in remote-sensing observations of coronal cavities, filament channels, sigmoids, EUV "hot channels," white light CMEs, and in situ observations of magnetic clouds points to the possibility of significant progress in understanding CMEs. In this white paper, we provide a brief overview of the potential of radio diagnostics for CMEs and CME progenitors, with a particular focus on the unique means for constraining their magnetic field and energetic electron population. Using synthetic observations based on realistic 3D MHD models, we also demonstrate the transformative potential of advancing such diagnostics by using broadband radio imaging spectropolarimetry with a high image dynamic range and high image fidelity. To achieve this goal, a solar-dedicated radio facility with such capabilities is recommended for implementation in the coming decade.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

Quantifying Energy Release in Solar Flares and Solar Eruptive Events: New Frontiers with a Next-Generation Solar Radio Facility

Solar flares and the often associated solar eruptive events serve as an outstanding laboratory to study the magnetic reconnection and the associated energy release and conversion processes under plasma conditions difficult to reproduce in the laboratory, and with considerable spatiotemporal details not possible elsewhere in the universe. In the past decade, thanks to advances in multi-wavelength imaging spectroscopy, as well as developments in theories and numerical modeling, significant progress has been made in improving our understanding of solar flare/eruption energy release. In particular, broadband imaging spectroscopy at microwave wavelengths offered by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA) has enabled the revolutionary capability of measuring the time-evolving coronal magnetic fields at or near the flare reconnection region. However, owing to EOVSA's limited dynamic range, imaging fidelity, and angular resolution, such measurements can only be done in a region around the brightest source(s) where the signal-to-noise is sufficiently large. In this white paper, after a brief introduction to the outstanding questions and challenges pertinent to magnetic energy release in solar flares and eruptions, we will demonstrate how a next-generation radio facility with many (~100-200) antenna elements can bring the next revolution by enabling high dynamic range, high fidelity broadband imaging spectropolarimetry along with a sub-second time resolution and arcsecond-level angular resolution. We recommend to prioritize the implementation of such a ground-based instrument within this decade. We also call for facilitating multi-wavelength, multi-messenger observations and advanced numerical modeling in order to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the "system science" of solar flares and eruptions.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2022

Microwave Imaging of Quasi-periodic Pulsations at Flare Current Sheet

Quasi-periodic pulsations (QPPs) are frequently detected in solar and stellar flares, but the underlying physical mechanisms are still to be ascertained. Here, we show microwave QPPs during a solar flare originating from quasi-periodic magnetic reconnection at the flare current sheet. They appear as two vertically detached but closely related sources with the brighter ones located at flare loops and the weaker ones along the stretched current sheet. Although the brightness temperatures of the two microwave sources differ greatly, they vary in phase with periods of about 10--20 s and 30--60 s. The gyrosynchrotron-dominated microwave spectra also present a quasi-periodic soft-hard-soft evolution. These results suggest that relevant high-energy electrons are accelerated by quasi-periodic reconnection, likely arising from the modulation of magnetic islands within the current sheet as validated by a 2.5-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Multiple Regions of Nonthermal Quasi-Periodic Pulsations during the Impulsive Phase of a Solar Flare

Flare-associated quasiperiodic pulsations (QPPs) in radio and X-ray wavelengths, particularly those related to nonthermal electrons, contain important information about the energy release and transport processes during flares. However, the paucity of spatially resolved observations of such QPPs with a fast time cadence has been an obstacle for us to further understand their physical nature. Here, we report observations of such a QPP event that occurred during the impulsive phase of a C1.8-class eruptive solar flare using radio imaging spectroscopy data from the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) and complementary X-ray imaging and spectroscopy data. The radio QPPs, observed by the VLA in the 1--2 GHz with a subsecond cadence, are shown as three spatially distinct sources with different physical characteristics. Two radio sources are located near the conjugate footpoints of the erupting magnetic flux rope with opposite senses of polarization. One of the sources displays a QPP behavior with a ~5 s period. The third radio source, located at the top of the postflare arcade, coincides with the location of an X-ray source and shares a similar period of ~25--45 s. We show that the two oppositely polarized radio sources are likely due to coherent electron cyclotron maser (ECM) emission. On the other hand, the looptop QPP source, observed in both radio and X-rays, is consistent with incoherent gyrosynchrotron and bremsstrahlung emission, respectively. We conclude that the concurrent, but spatially distinct QPP sources must involve multiple mechanisms which operate in different magnetic loop systems and at different periods.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Numerical Modeling of Energetic Electron Acceleration, Transport, and Emission in Solar Flares: Connecting Loop-top and Footpoint Hard X-Ray Sources

The acceleration and transport of energetic electrons during solar flares is one of the outstanding topics in solar physics. Recent X-ray and radio imaging and spectroscopy observations have provided diagnostics of the distribution of nonthermal electrons and suggested that, in certain flare events, electrons are primarily accelerated in the loop-top and likely experience trapping and/or scattering effects. By combining the focused particle transport equation with magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of solar flares, we present a macroscopic particle model that naturally incorporates electron acceleration and transport. Our simulation results indicate that the physical processes such as turbulent pitch-angle scattering can have important impacts on both electron acceleration in the loop-top and transport in the flare loop, and their influences are highly energy dependent. A spatial-dependent turbulent scattering with enhancement in the loop-top can enable both efficient electron acceleration to high energies and transport of abundant electrons to the footpoints. We further generate spatially resolved synthetic hard X-ray (HXR) emission images and spectra, revealing both the loop-top and footpoint HXR sources. Similar to the observations, we show that the footpoint HXR sources are brighter and harder than the loop-top HXR source. We suggest that the macroscopic particle model provides new insights into understanding the connection between the observed loop-top and footpoint nonthermal emission sources by combining the particle model with dynamically evolving MHD simulations of solar flares.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Non-thermal Broadening of IRIS Fe XXI Lines Caused by Turbulent Plasma Flows in the Magnetic Reconnection Region During Solar Eruptions

Magnetic reconnection is the key mechanism for energy release in solar eruptions, where the high-temperature emission is the primary diagnostic for investigating the plasma properties during the reconnection process. Non-thermal broadening of high-temperature lines has been observed in both the reconnection current sheet (CS) and flare loop-top regions by UV spectrometers, but its origin remains unclear. In this work, we use a recently developed three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation to model magnetic reconnection in the standard solar flare geometry and reveal highly dynamic plasma flows in the reconnection regions. We calculate the synthetic profiles of the Fe XXI 1354 Å~line observed by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) spacecraft by using parameters of the MHD model, including plasma density, temperature, and velocity. Our model shows that the turbulent bulk plasma flows in the CS and flare loop-top regions are responsible for the non-thermal broadening of the Fe XXI emission line. The modeled non-thermal velocity ranges from tens of km s$^{-1}$ to more than two hundred km s$^{-1}$, which is consistent with the IRIS observations. Simulated 2D spectral line maps around the reconnection region also reveal highly dynamic downwflow structures where the high non-thermal velocity is large, which is consistent with the observations as well.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Rapid variations of Si IV spectra in a flare observed by IRIS at a sub-second cadence

We report on observations of highly-varying Si IV 1402.77 line profiles observed with the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) during the M-class flare from 2022 January 18 at an unprecedented 0.8 s cadence. Moment analysis of this line observed in flare ribbon kernels showed that the intensity, Doppler velocity, and non-thermal broadening exhibited variations with periods below 10 s. These variations were found to be correlated with properties of the Gaussian fit to a well-resolved secondary component of the line redshifted by up to 70 km s$^{-1}$, while the primary component was consistently observed near the rest wavelength of the line. A particularly high correlation was found between the non-thermal broadening of the line resulting from the moment analysis and the redshift of the secondary component. This means that the oscillatory enhancements in the line broadening were due to plasma flows (away from the observer) with varying properties. A simple de-projection of the Doppler velocities of the secondary component based on a three-dimensional reconstruction of flare loops rooted in the kernel suggests that the observed flows were caused by downflows and compatible with strong condensation flows recently predicted by numerical simulations. Furthermore, peaks of the intensity and the trends of Doppler velocity of the Gaussian fit to the secondary component (averaged in the ribbon) were found to correspond to one of the quasi-periodic pulsations (QPPs) detected during the event in the soft X-ray flux (as measured by the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES) and the microwave radio flux (as measured by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array, EOVSA). This result supports a scenario in which the QPPs were driven by repeated magnetic reconnection.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Hot-mode accretion and the physics of thin-disk galaxy formation

We use FIRE simulations to study disk formation in z~0, Milky Way-mass galaxies, and conclude that a key ingredient for the formation of thin stellar disks is the ability for accreting gas to develop an aligned angular momentum distribution via internal cancellation *prior* to joining the galaxy. Among galaxies with a high fraction (>70%) of their young stars in a thin disk (h/R~0.1) we find that: (i) hot, virial-temperature gas dominates the inflowing gas mass on halo scales (>~20 kpc), with radiative losses offset by compression heating; (ii) this hot accretion proceeds until angular momentum support slows inward motion, at which point the gas cools to T~10^4 K or less; (iii) prior to cooling, the accreting gas develops an angular momentum distribution that is aligned with the galaxy disk, and while cooling transitions from a quasi-spherical spatial configuration to a more flattened, disk-like configuration. We show that the existence of this "rotating cooling flow" accretion mode is strongly correlated with the fraction of stars forming in a thin disk among a sample of 17 z~0 galaxies spanning a halo mass range of 10^10.5 solar masses to 10^12 solar masses, or a stellar mass range 10^8 solar masses to 10^11 solar masses. Notably, galaxies with a thick disk or irregular morphology do not undergo significant angular momentum alignment of gas prior to accretion and show no correspondence between halo gas cooling and flattening. Our results suggest that rotating cooling flows (or, more generally, rotating subsonic flows) that become coherent and angular momentum-supported prior to accretion onto the galaxy are likely a necessary condition for the formation of thin, star-forming disk galaxies in a LambdaCDM universe.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2022

A model of double coronal hard X-ray sources in solar flares

A number of double coronal X-ray sources have been observed during solar flares by RHESSI, where the two sources reside at different sides of the inferred reconnection site. However, where and how are these X-ray-emitting electrons accelerated remains unclear. Here we present the first model of the double coronal hard X-ray (HXR) sources, where electrons are accelerated by a pair of termination shocks driven by bi-directional fast reconnection outflows. We model the acceleration and transport of electrons in the flare region by numerically solving the Parker transport equation using velocity and magnetic fields from the macroscopic magnetohydrodynamic simulation of a flux rope eruption. We show that electrons can be efficiently accelerated by the termination shocks and high-energy electrons mainly concentrate around the two shocks. The synthetic HXR emission images display two distinct sources extending to $>$100 keV below and above the reconnection region, with the upper source much fainter than the lower one. The HXR energy spectra of the two coronal sources show similar spectral slopes, consistent with the observations. Our simulation results suggest that the flare termination shock can be a promising particle acceleration mechanism in explaining the double-source nonthermal emissions in solar flares.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Implications for additional plasma heating driving the extreme-ultraviolet late phase of a solar flare with microwave imaging spectroscopy

Extreme-ultraviolet late phase (ELP) refers to the second extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) radiation enhancement observed in certain solar flares, which usually occurs tens of minutes to several hours after the peak of soft X-ray emission. The coronal loop system that hosts the ELP emission is often different from the main flaring arcade, and the enhanced EUV emission therein may imply an additional heating process. However, the origin of the ELP remains rather unclear. Here we present the analysis of a C1.4 flare that features such an ELP, which is also observed in microwave wavelengths by the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA). Similar to the case of the ELP, we find a gradual microwave enhancement that occurs about three minutes after the main impulsive phase microwave peaks. Radio sources coincide with both footpoints of the ELP loops and spectral fits on the time-varying microwave spectra demonstrate a clear deviation of the electron distribution from the Maxwellian case, which could result from injected nonthermal electrons or nonuniform heating to the footpoint plasma. We further point out that the delayed microwave enhancement suggests the presence of an additional heating process, which could be responsible for the evaporation of heated plasma that fills the ELP loops, producing the prolonged ELP emission.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2022

Amplified J-factors in the Galactic Center for velocity-dependent darkmatter annihilation in FIRE simulations

We use FIRE-2 zoom cosmological simulations of Milky Way size galaxy halos to calculate astrophysical J-factors for dark matter annihilation and indirect detection studies. In addition to velocity-independent (s-wave) annihilation cross sections $σ_v$, we also calculate effective J-factors for velocity-dependent models, where the annihilation cross section is either either p-wave ($\propto v^2/c^2$) or d-wave ($\propto v^4/c^4$). We use 12 pairs of simulations, each run with dark-matter-only (DMO) physics and FIRE-2 physics. We observe FIRE runs produce central dark matter velocity dispersions that are systematically larger than in DMO runs by factors of $\sim 2.5-4$. They also have a larger range of central ($\sim 400$ pc) dark matter densities than the DMO runs ($ρ_{\rm FIRE}/ρ_{\rm DMO} \simeq 0.5 - 3$) owing to the competing effects of baryonic contraction and feedback. At 3 degrees from the Galactic Center, FIRE J-factors are $5-50$ (p-wave) and $15-500$ (d-wave) times higher than in the DMO runs. The change in s-wave signal at 3 degrees is more modest and can be higher or lower ($\sim 0.3-6$), though the shape of the emission profile is flatter (less peaked towards the Galactic Center) and more circular on the sky in FIRE runs. Our results for s-wave are broadly consistent with the range of assumptions in most indirect detection studies. We observe p-wave J-factors that are significantly enhanced compared to most past estimates. We find that thermal models with p-wave annihilation may be within range of detection in the near future.

astro-ph.GA↗