2003 SPACE SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES |
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Tape Title | Record ID | Date Produced | TRT: |
Synopsis |
| FLARES POWERED BY EXTENSIVE DESTRUCTION | G03-070 | 12/09/03 | 00:06:00 | Scientists are always seeking to understand the processes that create flares, massive explosions on the Sun capable of releasing as much energy as a billion one-megaton bombs. This new observation from the Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) spacecraft seems to confirm one prevalent theory with actual observations: the large-scale destruction of magnetic fields in the Sun's atmosphere. |
TAPE CONTENTS: |
| ITEM (1): Animated Closeup of a Flare - The orange lines show the magnetic structure and the yellow shading represents the X-ray emission observed by RHESSI. Initially, the flare X-ray emission brightens while the top of the magnetic arch (parallel orange lines, left) decreases somewhat in height. The X-rays rapidly brighten and the feet of the arch become visible in X-rays when the X-ray blob above the top of the arch separates from the arch. After a 2-minute delay, the X-ray blob and the magnetic loop it is associated with (orange circle, right) speed outward at about 100,000 mph (300 km/sec). The arch and the loop gradually grow as newly reconnected magnetic fields build up around them. Based on an April 15, 2002 flare.
Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (2): RHESSI Observations - At such high temperatures, solar plasma will shine in X-rays, as observed in this July 23, 2002 flare. The RHESSI spacecraft saw a gradually increasing burst of X-rays (red) announcing the start of the flare. Several minutes later, RHESSI saw a burst of high-energy X-rays (blue) under the erupting CME. RHESSI also observed gamma ray emission near the flare (purple). Data is super-imposed on a TRACE image.
Courtesy: NASA / LMSAL / BBSO
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| ITEM (3): Anatomy of a Flare - The two orange lines extending above the surface of the Sun represent oppositely directed magnetic field lines extending out into the solar corona. They gradually move together and, when they touch, they break like overstretched elastic bands (represented by the white flash). Unlike elastic bands, the broken magnetic field lines immediately reconnect above and below the break point. The U-shaped reconnected magnetic field lines are seen to snap upward and downward, away from the point at which the reconnection occurred. This process extracts energy from the magnetic field, heating gas to high temperatures and accelerating particles to high energies.
Courtesy: NASA
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| ITEM (4): Solar Flare B-Roll - Solar flares happen when magnetic fields in the Sun's atmosphere become twisted and suddenly snap to a new configuration, like a rubber band breaking when overstretched. They are often associated with Coronal Mass Ejections (CME), which can launch up to 10 billion tons of ionized gas into space at speeds of one to two million miles an hour. CMEs can cause magnetic storms by interacting with the Earth's magnetic field, creating aurora and disturbances to space systems like satellites. This is an extremely large X17.2 flare from Oct. 28 as seen by two instruments on the SOHO spacecraft.
Courtesy: NASA/ESA
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| ITEM (5): A Multi-Mission View of Sun - In this unique view, images from five instruments on three separate satellites are combined in one frame. With so many coordinated spacecraft datasets and so many diverse assignments, this visualization is striking in the information it presents of an April 2002 flare - a radical view of one solar event from sunspot to flare to the X-rays pinpointed on that flare to the CME billowing out into space. Included spacecraft: SOHO, Trace and RHESSI.
Courtesy: NASA / ESA / LMSAL
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| ITEM (6): RHESSI Spacecraft - The Ramaty High-Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) spacecraft watches the Sun in X-rays and gamma rays. RHESSI is the first spacecraft to make high-resolution movies of flares using their high-energy radiation. Launched on Feb. 5, 2002, its primary objective is to study the secrets of how solar flares are produced in the Sun's atmosphere. RHESSI orbits Earth about 15 times a day and spins on its axis every 4 seconds.
Courtesy: NASA
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