arXiv subjects

Tom Van Doorsselaere

Publications and source records attributed to Tom Van Doorsselaere.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

Universal scaling behavior of resonant absorption

Mode conversion and resonant absorption are crucial mechanisms for wave transport and absorption. Scaling behavior of mode conversion or resonant absorption is well-known for electromagnetic and MHD waves in planar geometry. Our recent study showed that such a scaling behavior of resonant absorption could also exist for coronal loop oscillations with cylindrical geometry, but it was only tested for one density profile. Here we generalise our previous study on the scaling behavior of resonant absorption by considering multiple density profiles. Applying an invariant imbedding method to the ideal MHD wave equations, we show that the scaling behavior also exists for these density models. We thus generalise our earlier results and show that such a universal scaling exists in cylindrical geometry, too. Given these results and the earlier results in planar geometry, we formulate a hypothesis that a universal scaling behavior exists regardless of the type of mode conversion or resonant absorption.

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arXiv2019

Wave heating in simulated multi-stranded coronal loops

It has been found that the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (KHI) induced by both transverse and torsional oscillations in coronal loops can reinforce the effects of wave heating. In this study, we model a coronal loop as a system of individual strands, and we study wave heating effects by considering a combined transverse and torsional driver at the loop footpoint. We deposit the same energy into the multi-stranded loop and an equivalent monolithic loop, and then observe a faster increase in the internal energy and temperature in the multi-stranded model. Therefore, the multi-stranded model is more efficient in starting the heating process. Moreover, higher temperature is observed near the footpoint in the multi-stranded loop and near the apex in the monolithic loop. The apparent heating location in the multi-stranded loop agrees with the previous predictions and observations. Given the differences in the results from our multi-stranded loop and monolithic loop simulations, and given that coronal loops are suggested to be multi-stranded on both theoretical and observational grounds, our results suggest that the multi-strandedness of coronal loops needs to be incorporated in future wave-based heating mechanisms.

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arXiv2019

Investigating `dark' energy in the solar corona using forward modeling of MHD waves

It is now well established that the Alfvénic waves are ubiquitous in the solar corona. However, the Alfvénic wave energy estimated from the Doppler velocity measurements in the corona was found to be four orders of magnitude less than that estimated from non-thermal line widths. McIntosh & De Pontieu (2012) suggested that this discrepancy in energy might be due to the line-of-sight (LOS) superposition of the several oscillating structures, which can lead to an underestimation of the Alfvénic wave amplitudes and energies. McIntosh & De Pontieu (2012) termed this coronal `dark' or `hidden' energy. However, their simulations required the use of an additional, unknown source of Alfvénic wave energy to provide agreement with measurements of the coronal non-thermal line widths. In this study, we investigate the requirement of this unknown source of additional `dark' energy in the solar corona using gravitationally stratified 3D magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations of propagating waves. We excite the transverse MHD waves and generate synthetic observations for the Fe XIII emission line. We establish that the LOS superposition greatly reduces the Doppler velocity amplitudes and increases the non-thermal line widths. Importantly, our model generates the observed wedge-shaped correlation between Doppler velocities and non-thermal line widths. We find that the observed wave energy is only 0.2-1\% of the true wave energy which explains 2-3 orders of magnitude of the energy discrepancy. We conclusively establish that the true wave energies are hidden in the non-thermal line widths. Hence, our results rule out the requirement for an additional `dark' energy in the solar corona.

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arXiv2019

Coronal loop transverse oscillations excited by different driver frequencies

We analyse transverse oscillations of a coronal loop excited by continuous monoperiodic motions of the loop footpoint at different frequencies in the presence of gravity. Using the MPI-AMRVAC code, we perform three-dimensional numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations, considering the loop as a magnetic flux tube filled in with denser, hotter, and gravitationally stratified plasma. We show the resonant response of the loop to its external excitation and analyse the development of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability at different heights. We also study the spatial distribution of plasma heating due to transverse oscillations along the loop. The positions of the maximum heating are in total agreement with those for the intensity of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, and correspond to the standing wave anti-nodes in the resonant cases. The initial temperature configuration and plasma mixing effect appear to play a significant role in plasma heating by transverse footpoint motions. In particular, the development of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in a hotter loop results in the enhancement of the mean plasma temperature in the domain.

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arXiv2019

Wave modes excited by photospheric p-modes and mode conversion in a multi-loop system

Context. Waves are ubiquitous in the solar corona and there are indications that they are excited by photospheric p-modes. However, it is unclear how p-modes in coronal loops are converted to sausage modes and transverse (kink) modes, which are observed in the corona. Aims. We aim to investigate how those wave modes are excited in the lower corona by photospheric acoustic waves. Methods. We built 3D magnetohydrostatic loop systems with multiple inclinations spanning from the photosphere to the lower corona. We then simulated these atmospheres with the MANCHA code, in which we perturb the equilibrium with a p-mode driver at the bottom of the domain. By splitting the velocity perturbation into components longitudinal, normal, and azimuthal to the magnetic flux surfaces we can study wave behavior. Results. In vertical flux tubes, we find that deformed fast sausage surface waves and slow sausage body waves are excited. In inclined flux tubes fast kink surface waves, slow sausage body waves, and either a fast sausage surface wave or a plane wave are excited. In addition, we calculate a wave conversion factor (0 $\le$ C $\le$ 1) from acoustic to magnetic wave behavior by taking the ratio of the mean magnetic energy flux to the sum of the mean magnetic and acoustic energy flux and compare it to a commonly used theoretical conversion factor. We find that between magnetic field inclinations of 10$^\circ$ to 30$^\circ$ those two methods lie within 40%. For smaller inclinations the absolute deviation is smaller than 0.1.

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arXiv2019

High-frequency dynamics of active region moss as observed by IRIS

The high temporal, spatial and spectral resolution of Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) has provided new insights into the understanding of different small-scale processes occurring at the chromospheric and transition region (TR) heights. We study the dynamics of high-frequency oscillations of active region (AR 2376) moss as recorded by simultaneous imaging and spectral data of IRIS. Wavelet transformation, power maps generated from slit-jaw images in the Si IV 1400Åpassband, and sit-and-stare spectroscopic observations of the Si IV 1403Åspectral line reveal the presence of high-frequency oscillations with $\sim$1-2 minute periods in the bright moss regions. The presence of such low periodicities is further confirmed by intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) as obtained by the empirical mode decomposition (EMD) technique. We find evidence of the presence of slow waves and reconnection-like events, and together they cause the high-frequency oscillations in the bright moss regions.

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arXiv2019

Forward Modeling of SDO/AIA and X-Ray Emission from a Simulated Flux Rope Ejection

We conduct forward-modeling analysis based on our 2.5 dimensional magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulation of magnetic flux rope (MFR) formation and eruption driven by photospheric converging motion. The current sheet (CS) evolution during the MFR formation and eruption process in our MHD simulation can be divided into four stages. The current sheet (CS) evolution during the MFR formation and eruption process in our MHD simulation can be divided into four stages. The first stage shows the CS forming and gradually lengthening. Resistive instabilities that disrupt the CS mark the beginning of the second stage. Magnetic islands disappear in the third stage and reappear in the fourth stage. Synthetic images and light curves of the seven Solar Dynamics Observatory/Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) channels, i.e., 9.4 nm, 13.1 nm, 17.1 nm, 19.3 nm, 21.1 nm, 30.4 nm, and 33.5 nm, and the 3-25 keV thermal X-ray are obtained with forward-modeling analysis. The loop-top source and the coronal sources of the soft X-ray are reproduced in forward modeling. The light curves of the seven SDO/AIA channels start to rise once resistive instabilities develop. The light curve of the 3-25 keV thermal X-ray starts to go up when the reconnection rate reaches one of its peaks. Quasiperiodic pulsations (QPPs) appear twice in the SDO/AIA 17.1 nm, 21.1 nm, and 30.4 nm channels, corresponding to the period of chaotic (re)appearance and CS-guided displacements of the magnetic islands. QPPs appear once in the SDO/AIA 9.4 nm and 33.5 nm channels after the disruption of the CS by resistive instabilities and in the 19.3 nm channel when the chaotic motion of the magnetic islands reappears.

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arXiv2019

An Analytical Model of the Kelvin-Helmholtz Instability of Transverse Coronal Loop Oscillations

Recent numerical simulations have demonstrated that transverse coronal loop oscillations are susceptible to the Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability due to the counter-streaming motions at the loop boundary. We present the first analytical model of this phenomenon. The region at the loop boundary where the shearing motions are greatest is treated as a straight interface separating time-periodic counter-streaming flows. In order to consider a twisted tube, the magnetic field at one side of the interface is inclined. We show that the evolution of the displacement at the interface is governed by Mathieu's equation and we use this equation to study the stability of the interface. We prove that the interface is always unstable, and that, under certain conditions, the magnetic shear may reduce the instability growth rate. The result, that the magnetic shear cannot stabilise the interface, explains the numerically found fact that the magnetic twist does not prevent the onset of the KH instability at the boundary of an oscillating magnetic tube. We also introduce the notion of the loop $σ$-stability. We say that a transversally oscillating loop is $σ$-stable if the KH instability growth time is larger than the damping time of the kink oscillation. We show that even relatively weakly twisted loops are $σ$-stable.

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arXiv2018

Quasi-periodic pulsations in a solar flare with an unusual phase shift

Two kinds of processes could occur during the flare decay phase: processes of energy release or processes of energy relaxation. Quasi-periodic pulsations (QPPs) of the broadband emission are a good tool for the verification of mechanisms. We aim to study the processes during the decay phase of the X-class solar flare SOL2014-03-29T17:48. The observations in X-ray, microwave, and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) bands are exploited to study the fine temporal, spatial, and spectral structures of the flare. The periods, amplitudes, and phases of both the fluxes and physical parameters (emission measure, temperature) are studied using standard methods of correlation, Fourier, and wavelet analyses. It is found that the source of the QPPs is associated with the uniform post-flare loop. The X-ray source is located at the top of the arcade. QPPs with the similar characteristic time scales of $P\approx$ 74--80 s are found in the X-ray (3--25 keV) and microwave (15.7 GHz) emissions. Besides, QPPs with the same period are found in the time profiles of both the temperature ($T_e$) and emission measure ($EM$). The QPPs in temperature and the QPPs in emission measure demonstrate anti-phase behavior. The analysis reveals the quasi-periodic process of energy relaxation, without any additional source of energy during the decay phase. The periods of the QPPs are in a good agreement with second harmonic of standing slow magneto-acoustic wave in the arcade which could be triggered by a Moreton wave initiated by the flare in the direct vicinity of the arcade.

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arXiv2018

Non-equilibrium Ionization Effects on Extreme-Ultraviolet Emissions Modulated by Standing Sausage Modes in Coronal Loops

Forward-modeling the emission properties in various passbands is important for confidently identifying magnetohydrodynamic waves in the structured solar corona. We examine how Non-equilibrium Ionization (NEI) affects the Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) emissions modulated by standing fast sausage modes (FSMs) in coronal loops, taking the Fe IX 171 Å and Fe XII 193 Å emission lines as examples. Starting with the expressions for linear FSMs in straight cylinders, we synthesize the specific intensities and spectral profiles for the two spectral lines by incorporating the self-consistently derived ionic fractions in the relevant contribution functions. We find that relative to the case where Equilibrium Ionization (EI) is assumed, NEI considerably impacts the intensity modulations, but shows essentially no effect on the Doppler velocities or widths. Furthermore, NEI may affect the phase difference between intensity variations and those in Doppler widths for Fe XII 193 Å when the line-of-sight is oblique to the loop axis. While this difference is $180^\circ$ when EI is assumed, it is $\sim 90^\circ$ when NEI is incorporated for the parameters we choose. We conclude that in addition to viewing angles and instrumental resolutions, NEI further complicates the detection of FSMs in spectroscopic measurements of coronal loops in the EUV passband.

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arXiv2018

Heating effects from driven transverse and Alfvén waves in coronal loops

Recent numerical studies revealed that transverse motions of coronal loops can induce the Kelvin-Helmholtz Instability (KHI). This process could be important in coronal heating because it leads to dissipation of energy at small spatial-scale plasma interactions. Meanwhile, small amplitude decayless oscillations in coronal loops have been discovered recently in observations of SDO/AIA. We model such oscillations in coronal loops and study wave heating effects, considering a kink and Alfv{é}n driver separately and a mixed driver at the bottom of flux tubes. Both the transverse and Alfv{é}n oscillations can lead to the KHI. Meanwhile, the Alfv{é}n oscillations established in loops will experience phase mixing. Both processes will generate small spatial-scale structures, which can help the dissipation of wave energy. Indeed, we observe the increase of internal energy and temperature in loop regions. The heating is more pronounced for the simulation containing the mixed kink and Alfv{é}n driver. This means that the mixed wave modes can lead to a more efficient energy dissipation in the turbulent state of the plasma and that the KHI eddies act as an agent to dissipate energy in other wave modes. Furthermore, we also obtained forward modelling results using the FoMo code. We obtained forward models which are very similar to the observations of decayless oscillations. Due to the limited resolution of instruments, neither Alfv{é}n modes nor the fine structures are observable. Therefore, this numerical study shows that Alfv{é}n modes probably can co-exist with kink modes, leading to enhanced heating.

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arXiv2018

Broadening of the DEM by multi-shelled and turbulent loops

Broad differential emission measure (DEM) distributions in the corona are a sign of multi-thermal plasma along the line-of-sight. Traditionally, this is interpreted as evidence of multi-stranded loops. Recently, however, it has been shown that multi-stranded loops are unlikely to exist in the solar corona, because of their instability to transverse perturbations. We aim to test if loop models subject to the Transverse Wave-Induced Kelvin-Helmholtz (TWIKH) instability result in broad DEMs, potentially explaining the observations. We took simulation snapshots and compute the numerical DEM. Moreover, we performed forward-modelling in the relevant AIA channels before reconstructing the DEM. We find that turbulent loop models broaden their initial DEM, because of the turbulent mixing. The width of the DEM is determined by the initial temperature contrast with the exterior. We conclude that impulsively excited loop models have a rather narrow DEM, but that continuously driven models result in broad DEMs that are comparable to the observations.

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arXiv2017

Resonant absorption of surface sausage and surface kink modes under photospheric conditions

We study the effect of resonant absorption of surface sausage and surface kink modes under photospheric conditions where the slow surface sausage modes undergo resonant damping in the slow continuum and the surface kink modes in the slow and Alfvén continua at the transitional layers. We use recently derived analytical formulas to obtain the damping rate (time). By considering linear density and linear pressure profiles for the transitional layers, we show that resonant absorption in the slow continuum could be an efficient mechanism for the wave damping of the slow surface sausage and slow surface kink modes whilst the damping rate of the slow surface kink mode in the Alfvén continuum is weak. It is also found that the resonant damping of the fast surface kink mode is much stronger than that of the slow surface kink mode, showing a similar efficiency as under coronal conditions. It is worth to notice that the slow body sausage and kink modes can also resonantly damp in the slow continuum for those linear profiles.

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arXiv2017

Stellar flares observed in long cadence data from the Kepler mission

We aim to perform a statistical study of stellar flares observed by Kepler. We want to study the flare amplitude, duration, energy and occurrence rates, and how they are related to the spectral type and rotation period. To that end, we have developed an automated flare detection and characterisation algorithm. We have harvested the stellar parameters from the Kepler input catalogue and the rotation periods from McQuillan et al. (2014). We find several new candidate A stars showing flaring activity. Moreover, we find 653 giants with flares. From the statistical distribution of flare properties, we find that the flare amplitude distribution has a similar behaviour between F+G-types and K+M-types. The flare duration and flare energy seem to be grouped between G+K+M-types vs. F-types and giants. We also detect a tail of stars with high flare occurrence rates across all spectral types (but most prominent in the late spectral types), and this is compatible with the existence of "flare stars". Finally, we have found a strong correlation of the flare occurrence rate and the flare amplitude with the stellar rotation period: a quickly rotating star is more likely to flare often, and has a higher chance to generate large flares.

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arXiv2017

Generalized phase mixing: Turbulence-like behaviour from unidirectionally propagating MHD waves

We present the results of three-dimensional (3D) ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulations on the dynamics of a perpendicularly inhomogeneous plasma disturbed by propagating Alfvénic waves. Simpler versions of this scenario have been extensively studied as the phenomenon of phase mixing. We show that, by generalizing the textbook version of phase mixing, interesting phenomena are obtained, such as turbulence-like behavior and complex current-sheet structure, a novelty in longitudinally homogeneous plasma excited by unidirectionally propagating waves. This constitutes an important finding for turbulence-related phenomena in astrophysics in general, relaxing the conditions that have to be fulfilled in order to generate turbulent behavior.

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arXiv2017

Resonant Absorption of Axisymmetric Modes in Twisted Magnetic Flux Tubes

It has been shown recently that magnetic twist and axisymmetric MHD modes are ubiquitous in the solar atmosphere and therefore, the study of resonant absorption for these modes have become a pressing issue as it can have important consequences for heating magnetic flux tubes in the solar atmosphere and the observed damping. In this investigation, for the first time, we calculate the damping rate for axisymmetric MHD waves in weakly twisted magnetic flux tubes. Our aim is to investigate the impact of resonant damping of these modes for solar atmospheric conditions. This analytical study is based on an idealized configuration of a straight magnetic flux tube with a weak magnetic twist inside as well as outside the tube. By implementing the conservation laws derived by \cite{Sakurai:1991aa} and the analytic solutions for weakly twisted flux tubes obtained recently by \cite{Giagkiozis:2015apj}, we derive a dispersion relation for resonantly damped axisymmetric modes in the spectrum of the Alfvén continuum. We also obtain an insightful analytical expression for the damping rate in the long wavelength limit. Furthermore, it shown that both the longitudinal magnetic field and the density, which are allowed to vary continuously in the inhomogeneous layer, have a significant impact on the damping time. Given the conditions in the solar atmosphere, resonantly damped axisymmetric modes are highly likely to be ubiquitous and play an important role in energy dissipation. We also suggest that given the character of these waves, it is likely that they have already been observed in the guise of Alfvén waves.

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arXiv2017

An Inside Look at Sunspot Oscillations with Higher Azimuthal Wavenumbers

Solar chromospheric observations of sunspot umbrae offer an exceptional view of magneto-hydrodynamic wave phenomena. In recent years, a wealth of wave signatures related to propagating magneto-acoustic modes have been presented, which demonstrate complex spatial and temporal structuring of the wave components. Theoretical modelling has demonstrated how these ubiquitous waves are consistent with an m=0 slow magneto-acoustic mode, which are excited by trapped sub-photospheric acoustic (p-mode) waves. However, the spectrum of umbral waves is broad, suggesting that the observed signatures represent the superposition of numerous frequencies and/or modes. We apply Fourier filtering, in both spatial and temporal domains, to extract chromospheric umbral wave characteristics consistent with an m=1 slow magneto-acoustic mode. This identification has not been described before. Angular frequencies of 0.037 +/- 0.007 rad/s (2.1 +/- 0.4 deg/s), corresponding to a period approximately 170 s for the m=1 mode are uncovered for spatial wavenumbers in the range of 0.45<k<0.90 arcsec^-1 (5000-9000 km). Theoretical dispersion relations are solved, with corresponding eigenfunctions computed, which allows the density perturbations to be investigated and compared with our observations. Such magnetohydrodynamic modelling confirms our interpretation that the identified wave signatures are the first direct observations of an m=1 slow magneto-acoustic mode in the chromospheric umbra of a sunspot.

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arXiv2017

Observational signatures of transverse MHD waves and associated dynamic instabilities

MHD waves permeate the solar atmosphere and constitute potential coronal heating agents. Yet, the waves detected so far may be but a small subset of the true existing wave power. Detection is limited by instrumental constraints, but also by wave processes that localise the wave power in undetectable spatial scales. In this study we conduct 3D MHD simulations and forward modelling of standing transverse MHD waves in coronal loops with uniform and non-uniform temperature variation in the perpendicular cross-section. The observed signatures are largely dominated by the combination of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (KHI), resonant absorption and phase mixing. In the presence of a cross-loop temperature gradient we find that emission lines sensitive to the loop core catch different signatures than those more sensitive to the loop boundary and the surrounding corona, leading to an out-of-phase intensity modulation produced by the KHI mixing. Common signatures to all considered models include an intensity and loop width modulation at half the kink period, fine strand-like structure, a characteristic arrow-shaped structure in the Doppler maps, overall line broadening in time but particularly at the loop edges. For our model, most of these features can be captured with a spatial resolution of $0.33\arcsec$ and spectral resolution of 25~km~s$^{-1}$, although severe over-estimation of the line width is obtained. Resonant absorption leads to a significant decrease of the observed kinetic energy from Doppler motions over time, which is not recovered by a corresponding increase in the line width from phase mixing and the KHI motions. We estimate this hidden wave energy to be a factor of $5-10$ of the observed value.

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