Stepwise changes of the photospheric magnetic field, which often becomes more horizontal, have been observed during many flares. Previous interpretations include coronal loops that contract and it has been speculated that such jerks could be responsible for sunquakes. Here we report the detection of stepwise chromospheric line-of-sight magnetic field (B$_{\rm LOS}$) changes obtained through spectropolarimetry of Ca II 8542 Å with DST/IBIS during the X1-flare SOL20140329T17:48. They are stronger ($<$640 Mx cm$^{-2}$) and appear in larger areas than their photospheric counterparts ($<$320 Mx cm$^{-2}$). The absolute value of B$_{\rm LOS}$ more often decreases than increases. Photospheric changes are predominantly located near a polarity inversion line, chromospheric changes near footpoints of loops. The locations of changes are near, but not exactly co-spatial to hard X-ray (HXR) emission and neither to enhanced continuum emission, nor a small sunquake. Enhanced chromospheric and coronal emission is observed in nearly all locations that exhibit changes of B$_{\rm LOS}$, but the emission also occurs in many locations without any B$_{\rm LOS}$ changes. Photospheric and chromospheric changes of B$_{\rm LOS}$ show differences in timing, sign, and size and seem independent of each other. A simple model of contracting loops yields changes of opposite sign to those observed. An explanation for this discrepancy could be increasing loop sizes or loops that untwist in a certain direction during the flare. It is yet unclear which processes are responsible for the observed changes, their timing, size and locations, especially considering the incoherence between photosphere and chromosphere.
We present different signatures of chromospheric evaporation in two solar flares observed by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS). In the B1.6 flare on 2016 December 6 (SOL2016-12-06T10:40), the transition region Si IV line and the chromospheric C II and Mg II lines show blueshifts with low velocities up to 20 km/s at the flare loop footpoints in the rise phase, indicative of a gentle chromospheric evaporation. While in the C1.6 flare on 2015 December 19 (SOL2015-12-19T10:51), the Si IV, C II, and Mg II lines exhibit redshifts with velocities from several to tens of km/s at the foo…
This paper presents an overview of some recent observational and theoretical results on solar flares, with an emphasis on flare impulsive-phase chromospheric properties, including: electron diagnostics, optical and UV emission, and discoveries made by the Hinode mission, especially in the EUV. A brief perspective on future observations and theoretical requirements is also given
Radiative losses in the chromosphere are very important in the energy balance. There have been efforts to make simple lookup tables for chromospheric radiative losses in the quiet Sun. During solar flares, the atmospheric conditions are quite different, and the currently available recipe of Gan & Fang (1990) is constructed from semi-empirical models. It remains to be evaluated how these recipes work in flare conditions. We aim to construct an approximate recipe of chromospheric radiative losses for solar flares. We follow the method of Carlsson & Leenaarts (2012) to tabulate the optically thin…
We analyze a grid of radiative hydrodynamic simulations of solar flares to study the energy balance and response of the atmosphere to nonthermal electron beam heating. The appearance of chromospheric bubbles is one of the most notable features that we find in the simulations. These pockets of chromospheric plasma get trapped between the transition region and the lower atmosphere as it is superheated by the particle beam. The chromospheric bubbles are seen in the synthetic spectra, appearing as an additional component to Balmer line profiles with high Doppler velocities as high as 200 km/s. The…
The emphasis of observational and theoretical flare studies in the last decade or two has been on the flare corona, and attention has shifted substantially away from the flare's chromospheric aspects. However, although the pre-flare energy is stored in the corona, the radiative flare is primarily a chromospheric phenomenon, and its chromospheric emission presents a wealth of diagnostics for the thermal and non-thermal components of the flare. I will here review the chromospheric signatures of flare energy release and the problems thrown up by the application of these diagnostics in the context…
We present a new automated algorithm to identify, track, and characterize small-scale brightening associated with solar eruptive phenomena observed in Hα. The temporal spatially-localized changes in chromospheric intensities can be separated into two categories: flare ribbons and sequential chromospheric brightenings (SCBs). Within each category of brightening we determine the smallest resolvable locus of pixels, a kernel, and track the temporal evolution of the position and intensity of each kernel. This tracking is accomplished by isolating the eruptive features, identifying kernels, and lin…
Context. Radiative losses are an indispensable part in the numerical simulation of flares. Detailed calculations could be computationally expensive, especially in the chromosphere. There have been some approximate recipes for chromospheric radiative losses in flares, yet their feasibility in flare simulations needs further evaluation. Aims. We aim to evaluate the performance of different recipes for chromospheric radiative losses in flare simulations. Methods. We compare the atmospheric structure and line profiles in beam-heated flares calculated with detailed radiative losses and the approxim…
We explore the temporal relationship between microwave/HXR emission and Doppler velocity during the impulsive phase of a solar flare on 2014 October 27 (SOL2014-10-27), which displays a pulse on the light curves in microwave (34 GHz) and hard X-ray (HXR, 25-50 keV) bands before the flare maximum. Imaging observation shows that this pulse mainly comes from one footpoint of a solar flare loop. The slit of Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) stays at this footpoint during this solar flare. The Doppler velocities of Fe XXI 1354.09 A and Si IV 1402.77 A are extracted from the Gaussian fitt…
Recent measurements of vertical extents and positions of the chromospheric hard X-ray (HXR) flare sources based on Ramaty High-Energy Spectroscopic Imager (RHESSI) observations show a significant inconsistency with the theoretical predictions based on the standard collisional thick target model (CTTM). Using a hybrid flare code Flarix, we model simultaneously and self-consistently the propagation, scattering and energy losses of electron beams with power-law energy spectra and various initial pitch-angle distributions in a purely collisional approximation and concurrently the dynamic response …
We have studied the chromospheric evaporation flow during the impulsive phase of the flare by using the Hinode/EIS observation and 1D hydrodynamic numerical simulation coupled to the time-dependent ionization. The observation clearly shows that the strong redshift can be observed at the base of the flaring loop only during the impulsive phase. We performed two different numerical simulations to reproduce the strong downflows in FeXII and FeXV during the impulsive phase. By changing the thermal conduction coefficient, we carried out the numerical calculation of chromospheric evaporation in the …
Chromospheric evaporation refers to dynamic mass motions in flare loops as a result of rapid energy deposition in the chromosphere. These have been observed as blueshifts in X-ray and extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) spectral lines corresponding to upward motions at a few tens to a few hundreds of km/s. Past spectroscopic observations have also revealed a dominant stationary component, in addition to the blueshifted component, in emission lines formed at high temperatures (~10 MK). This is contradictory to evaporation models predicting predominant blueshifts in hot lines. The recently launched Interf…
We report on the physical properties of solar sequential chromospheric brightenings (SCBs) observed in conjunction with moderate-sized chromospheric flares with associated CMEs. To characterize these ephemeral events, we developed automated procedures to identify and track subsections (kernels) of solar flares and associated SCBs using high resolution H-alpha images. Following the algorithmic identification and a statistical analysis, we compare and find the following: SCBs are distinctly different from flare kernels in their temporal characteristics of intensity, Doppler structure, duration, …
We explored simultaneous observations of chromospheric evaporation and condensation during the impulsive phase of a C6.7 flare on 9 May 2019. The solar flare was simultaneously observed by multiple instruments, i.e., the New Vacuum Solar Telescope (NVST), the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), the Fermi, the Mingantu Spectral Radioheliograph, and the Nobeyama Radio Polarimeters. Using the single Gaussian fitting and the moment analysis technique, redshifted velocities at slow speeds of 15-19 km/s are found in the cool lines of C II and Si IV at one f…
We present observations of distinct UV spectral properties at different locations during an atypical X-shaped flare (SOL2014-11-09T15:32) observed by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS). In this flare, four chromospheric ribbons appear and converge at an X-point where a separator is anchored. Above the X-point, two sets of non-coplanar coronal loops approach laterally and reconnect at the separator. The IRIS slit was located close to the X-point, cutting across some of the flare ribbons and loops. Near the location of the separator, the Si IV 1402.77 A line exhibits significantly …
Context. Magnetic reconnection during flares takes place in the corona but a substantial part of flare energy is deposited in the chromosphere. However, high-resolution spectro-polarimetric chromospheric observations of flares are very rare. The most used observables are Ca II 8542 Å and He I 10830 Å. Aims. We aim to study the chromosphere during a C3.6 class flare via spectro-polarimetric observations of the He I D3 line. Methods. We present the first SST/CRISP spectro-polarimetric observations of He I D3. We analyze the data using the inversion code HAZEL, and estimate the LOS velocity and t…
We use high spatial and temporal resolution observations from the Swedish Solar Telescope to study the chromospheric velocities of a C-class flare originating from active region NOAA 10969. A time-distance analysis is employed to estimate directional velocity components in H-alpha and Ca II K image sequences. Also, imaging spectroscopy has allowed us to determine flare-induced line-of-sight velocities. A wavelet analysis is used to analyse the periodic nature of associated flare bursts. Time-distance analysis reveals velocities as high as 64 km/s along the flare ribbon and 15 km/s perpendicula…
Chromospheric evaporation is observed as Doppler blueshift during solar flares. It plays one of key roles in dynamics and energetics of solar flares, however, its mechanism is still unknown. In this paper we present a detailed analysis of spatially-resolved multi-wavelength observations of chromospheric evaporation during an M 1.0 class solar flare (SOL2014-06-12T21:12) using data from the NASA's IRIS (Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph) and HMI/SDO (Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager onboard Solar Dynamics Observatory) telescopes, and VIS/NST (Visible Imaging Spectrometer at New Solar Telesc…
We present temporal variations of the Si IV line profiles at the flare ribbons in three solar flares observed by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS). In the M1.1 flare on 2014 September 6 and the X1.6 flare on 2014 September 10, the Si IV line profiles evolve from wholly redshifted to red-wing enhanced with the flare development. However, in the B1.8 flare on 2016 December 2, the Si IV line profiles are wholly redshifted throughout the flare evolution. We fit the wholly redshifted line profiles with a single Gaussian function but the red-asymmetric ones with a double Gaussian func…
Observations of solar flare reconnection at very high spatial and temporal resolution can be made indirectly at the footpoints of reconnected loops into which flare energy is deposited. The response of the lower atmosphere to this energy input includes a downward-propagating shock called chromospheric condensation, which can be observed in the UV and visible. In order to characterize reconnection using high-resolution observations of this response, one must develop a quantitative relationship between the two. Such a relation was recently developed and here we test it on observations of chromos…
We investigate the occurrence of slipping magnetic reconnection, chromospheric evaporation, and coronal loop dynamics in the 2014 September 10 X-class flare. The slipping reconnection is found to be present throughout the flare from its early phase. Flare loops are seen to slip in opposite directions towards both ends of the ribbons. Velocities of 20--40 km\,s$^{-1}$ are found within time windows where the slipping is well resolved. The warm coronal loops exhibit expanding and contracting motions that are interpreted as displacements due to the growing flux rope that subsequently erupts. This …
In this paper, we report our multiwavelength observations of the C3.1 circular-ribbon flare SOL2015-10-16T10:20 in AR 12434. The flare consisted of a circular flare ribbon (CFR), an inner flare ribbon (IFR) inside, and a pair of short parallel flare ribbons (PFRs). During the impulsive phase of the flare, "two-step" raster observations of \textit{IRIS} with a cadence of 6 s and an exposure time of 2 s show plasma downflow at the CFR in the Si {\sc iv} $λ$1402.77 line, suggesting chromospheric condensation. The downflow speeds first increased rapidly from a few km s$^{-1}$ to the peak values of…
Active region NOAA 12673 was extremely volatile in 2017 September, producing many solar flares, including the largest of solar cycle 24, an X9.3 flare of 06 September 2017. It has been reported that this flare produced a number of sunquakes along the flare ribbon (Sharykin & Kosovichev 2018; Zhao & Chen 2018). We have used co-temporal and co-spatial Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) line-of-sight (LOS) and Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope observations to show evidence of the chromospheric response to these sunquakes. Analysis of the Ca II 8542 Å\space line profiles of the wavefronts revealed t…
Dynamics of hot chromospheric plasma of solar flares is a key to understanding of mechanisms of flare energy release and particle acceleration. A moderate M1.0 class flare of 12 June, 2014 (SOL2014-06-12T21:12) was simultaneously observed by NASA's Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), other spacecraft, and also by New Solar Telescope (NST) at the BBSO. This paper presents the first part of our investigation focused on analysis of the IRIS data. Our analysis of the IRIS data in different spectral lines reveals strong redshifted jet-like flow with the speed of ~100 km/s of the chromosph…
In the standard model of solar flares, energy deposition by a beam of electrons drives strong chromospheric evaporation leading to a significantly denser corona and much brighter emission across the spectrum. Chromospheric evaporation was examined in great detail by Fisher, Canfield, & McClymont (1985a,b,c), who described a distinction between two different regimes, termed explosive and gentle evaporation. In this work, we examine the importance of electron energy and stopping depths on the two regimes and on the atmospheric response. We find that with explosive evaporation, the atmospheric re…
We present high spatial resolution observations of chromospheric evaporation in the flare SOL2014-03-29T17:48. Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) observations of the FeXXI 1354.1 A line indicate evaporating plasma at a temperature of 10 MK along the flare ribbon during the flare peak and several minutes into the decay phase with upflow velocities between 30 km s$^{-1}$ and 200 km s$^{-1}$. Hard X-ray (HXR) footpoints were observed by RHESSI for two minutes during the peak of the flare. Their locations coincided with the locations of the upflows in parts of the southern flare ribbon b…
With observations from the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), we track the complete evolution of $\sim$11 MK evaporation flows in an M1.1 flare on 2014 September 6 and an X1.6 flare on 2014 September 10. These hot flows, as indicated by the blueshifted Fe~{\sc{xxi}}~1354.08Å~line, evolve smoothly with a velocity decreasing exponentially from $\sim$200~km~s$^{-1}$ to almost stationary within a few minutes. We find a good correlation between the flow velocity and energy deposition rate as represented by the hard X-Ray flux observed with the Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopi…
Chromospheric flare ribbons observed in H-alpha appear well-organized when first examined: ribbons impulsively brighten, morphologically evolve, and exponentially decay back to pre-flare levels. Upon closer inspection of H-alpha flares, there is often a significant number of compact areas brightening in concert with the flare eruption but are spatially separated from the evolving flare ribbon. One class of these brightenings is known as sequential chromospheric brightenings (SCBs). SCBs are often observed in the intimidate vicinity of erupting flares and are associated with coronal mass ejecti…
We discuss observations of chromospheric evaporation for a complex flare that occurred on 9 March 2012 near 03:30 UT obtained from the Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) on the Hinode spacecraft. This was a multiple event with a strong energy input that reached the M1.8 class when observed by EIS. EIS obtained a full-CCD spectrum of the flare. Chromospheric evaporation characterized by 150-200 km/s upflows was observed in multiple locations in multi-million degree spectral lines of flare ions such as Fe XXII, Fe XXIII, and Fe XXIV, with simultaneous 20-60 km/s upflows in million de…
Numerical models of solar flares typically focus on the behaviour of directly-heated flare models, adopting magnetic field- aligned, plane-parallel methodologies. With high spatial- and spectral-resolution ground-based optical observations of flares, it is essential also to understand the response of the plasma surrounding these strongly heated volumes. We investigate the effects of the extreme radiation field produced by a heated column of flare plasma on an adjacent slab of chromospheric plasma, using a two-dimensional radiative transfer model and considering the time-dependent solution to t…
In this paper, we report our multiwavelength imaging observations of chromospheric evaporation in a C5.5 circular-ribbon flare (CRF) on 2014 August 24. The flare was observed by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the \textit{Solar Dynamics Observatory} (\textit{SDO}), X-ray Telescope (XRT) on board the \textit{Hinode} spacecraft, and ground-based Nobeyama Radioheliograph (NoRH). The CRF consisted of a discrete circular ribbon with a diameter of $\sim$1$\arcmin$ and a short inner ribbon observed in ultraviolet (UV), extreme-ultraviolet (EUV), soft X-ray (SXR), and especially in 17 …
In this paper, we report our multiwavelength observations of the C4.2 circular-ribbon flare in active region (AR) 12434 on 2015 October 16. The short-lived flare was associated with positive magnetic polarities and a negative polarity inside, as revealed by the photospheric line-of-sight magnetograms. Such magnetic pattern is strongly indicative of a magnetic null point and spine-fan configuration in the corona. The flare was triggered by the eruption of a mini-filament residing in the AR, which produced the inner flare ribbon (IFR) and the southern part of a closed circular flare ribbon (CFR)…
We study spectroscopic observations of chromospheric evaporation mass flows in comparison to the energy input by electron beams derived from hard X-ray data for the white-light M2.5 flare of 2006 July 6. The event was captured in high cadence spectroscopic observing mode by SOHO/CDS combined with high-cadence imaging at various wavelengths in the visible, EUV and X-ray domain during the joint observing campaign JOP171. During the flare peak, we observe downflows in the He\,{\sc i} and O\,{\sc v} lines formed in the chromosphere and transition region, respectively, and simultaneous upflows in t…
Red-shifted components of chromospheric emission lines in the hard X-ray impulsive phase of solar flares have recently been studied through their 30 s evolution with the high resolution of IRIS. Radiative-hydrodynamic flare models show that these redshifts are generally reproduced by electron-beam generated chromospheric condensations. The models produce large ambient electron densities, and the pressure broadening of hydrogen Balmer series should be readily detected in observations. To accurately interpret upcoming spectral data of flares with the DKIST, we incorporate non-ideal, non-adiabati…
Oscillations in the solar atmosphere have long been observed in quiet conditions, and increasingly also in data taken during solar flares. The chromosphere is known for its 3-minute signals, which are particularly strong over sunspot umbrae. These signals are thought to be driven by photospheric disturbances and their periods determined by the chromosphere's acoustic cut-off frequency. A small number of observations have shown the chromospheric 3-minute signals to be affected by energetic events such as solar flares, however the link between flare activity and these oscillatory signals remains…
In this Letter we report the detection of chromospheric 3-minute oscillations in disk-integrated EUV irradiance observations during a solar flare. A wavelet analysis of detrended Lyman-alpha (from GOES/EUVS) and Lyman continuum (from SDO/EVE) emission from the 2011 February 15 X-class flare (SOL2011-02-15T01:56) revealed a $\sim$3-minute period present during the flare's main phase. The formation temperature of this emission locates this radiation to the flare's chromospheric footpoints, and similar behaviour is found in the SDO/AIA 1600Å and 1700Å channels, which are dominated by chromospheri…
The chromosphere is a complex region that acts as an intermediary between the magnetic flux emergence in the photosphere and the magnetic features seen in the corona. Large eruptions in the chromosphere of flares and filaments are often accompanied by ejections of coronal mass off the sun. Several studies have observed fast-moving progressive trains of compact bright points (called Sequential Chromospheric Brightenings or SCBs) streaming away from chromospheric flares that also produce a coronal mass ejection (CME). In this work, we review studies of SCBs and search for commonalties between th…
This study depends on KIC 9641031 eclipsing binary system with a chromospherically active component. There are three type variations, such as geometrical variations due to eclipses, sinusoidal variations due to the rotational modulations and also flares, in the light curves obtained with the data taken from the Kepler Mission Database. Taking into account results obtained from KIC 9641031's observations in the Kepler Mission Database, we present and discuss the details of chromospheric activity. The sinusoidal light variations due to rotational modulation and the flare events were modelled sep…
Magnetic energy released in the corona by solar flares reaches the chromosphere where it drives characteristic upflows and downflows known as evaporation and condensation. These flows are studied here for the case where energy is transported to the chromosphere by thermal conduction. An analytic model is used to develop relations by which the density and velocity of each flow can be predicted from coronal parameters including the flare's energy flux $F$. These relations are explored and refined using a series of numerical investigations in which the transition region is represented by a simpli…
Before the onset of a flare is observed in hard X-rays there is often a prolonged pre-flare or pre-heating phase with no detectable hard X-ray emission but pronounced soft X-ray emission suggesting that energy is being released and deposited into the corona and chromosphere already at this stage. This work analyses the temporal evolution of coronal source heating and the chromospheric response during this pre-heating phase to investigate the origin and nature of early energy release and transport during a solar flare. Simultaneous X-ray, EUV, and microwave observations of a well observed flare…
We present a statistical study of chromospheric evaporation in solar flares using simultaneous observations by the RHESSI X-ray telescope and the IRIS UV spectrograph. The results are compared with radiation hydrodynamic flare models from the F-CHROMA RADYN database. For each event, we study spatially-resolved Doppler shifts of spectral lines formed in the transition region (C\,II\,1334.5\,Å) and hot coronal plasma (Fe\,XXI\,1354.1\,Å) to investigate the dynamics of the solar atmosphere during the flare impulsive phase. We estimate the energy fluxes deposited by high-energy electrons using X-r…
High Resolution Spectroscopic Analysis of Chromospheric Line Evolution during an Energetic Flare on AD Leo
Seoul National University（首尔大学）；SNU Astronomy Research Center, Astronomy Program, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University（首尔大学天体物理与天文系天文研究中心）；Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute（韩国天文与空间科学研究院）；University of Science and Technology（科学技术大学）
利用高分辨率光谱分析AD Leo超耀斑的色球谱线演化，发现Hα辐射能量8.8×10^30 erg，总能量约10^33 erg，Ca II H&K和红外三重线延迟发射符合Neupert效应，表明累积加热主导缓变相。
X-ray and EUV observations are an important diagnostic of various plasma parameters of the solar atmosphere during solar flares. Soft X-ray and EUV observations often show coronal sources near the top of flaring loops, while hard X-ray emission is mostly observed from chromospheric footpoints. Combining RHESSI with simultaneous SDO/AIA observations, it is possible for the first time to determine the density, temperature, and emission profile of the solar atmosphere over a wide range of heights during a flare, using two independent methods. Here we analyze a near limb event during the first of …
We studied an X1.6 solar flare produced by NOAA AR 12602 on 2014 October 22. The entirety of this event was covered by RHESSI, IRIS, and Hinode/EIS, allowing analysis of the chromospheric response to a nonthermal electron driver. We derived the energy contained in nonthermal electrons via RHESSI spectral fitting, and linked the time-dependent parameters of this call to the response in Doppler velocity, density, and nonthermal width across a broad temperature range. The total energy injected was $4.8\times10^{30}$ erg, and lasted $352$ seconds. This energy drove explosive chromospheric evaporat…
We report observations of white-light ejecta in the low corona, for two X-class flares on the 2013 May 13, using data from the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) of the Solar Dynamics Observatory. At least two distinct kinds of sources appeared (chromospheric and coronal), in the early and later phases of flare development, in addition to the white-light footpoint sources commonly observed in the lower atmosphere. The gradual emissions have a clear identification with the classical loop-prominence system, but are brighter than expected and possibly seen here in the continuum rather than li…
We analyzed high-cadence sit-and-stare observations acquired with the Hinode/EIS spectrometer and HXR measurements acquired with RHESSI during an M-class flare. During the flare impulsive phase, we observe no significant flows in the cooler Fe XIII line but strong upflows, up to 80-150 km/s, in the hotter Fe XVI line. The largest Doppler shifts observed in the Fe XVI line were co-temporal with the sharp intensity peak. The electron density obtained from a Fe XIII line pair ratio exhibited fast increase (within two minutes) from the pre-flare level of 5.01x10^(9) cm^(-3) to 3.16x10^(10) cm^(-3)…
We have explored the relationship between hard X-ray (HXR) emissions and Doppler velocities caused by the chromospheric evaporation in two X1.6 class solar flares on 2014 September 10 and October 22, respectively. Both events display double ribbons and Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) slit is fixed on one of their ribbons from the flare onset. The explosive evaporations are detected in these two flares. The coronal line of Fe XXI 1354.09 A shows blue shifts, but chromospheric line of C I 1354.29 A shows red shifts during the impulsive phase. The chromospheric evaporation tends to a…
We present the first observation of a solar filament formed by magnetic reconnection and associated chromospheric evaporation and subsequent coronal condensation. Driven by shearing motion during flux emergence, a sequential tether-cutting reconnection processes occurred and resulted in an M1.3 confined flare accompany with the formation of a sigmoid structure. It is found that the flare had a conjugate compact footpoint brightenings, which correspond to the footpoints of the sigmoid. Furthermore, observational evidence of explosive evaporation is well diagnosed at the conjugate footpoint brig…
Sequential chromospheric brightenings (SCBs) are often observed in the immediate vicinity of erupting flares and are associated with coronal mass ejections. Since their initial discovery in 2005, there have been several subsequent investigations of SCBs. These studies have used differing detection and analysis techniques, making it difficult to compare results between studies. This work employs the automated detection algorithm of Kirk et al. (Solar Phys. 283, 97, 2013) to extract the physical characteristics of SCBs in 11 flares of varying size and intensity. We demonstrate that the magnetic …
The asymmetries observed in the line profiles of solar flares can provide important diagnostics of the properties and dynamics of the flaring atmosphere. In this paper the evolution of the Halpha and Ca II 8542 Å lines are studied using high spatial, temporal and spectral resolution ground-based observations of an M1.1 flare obtained with the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope. The temporal evolution of the Halpha line profiles from the flare kernel shows excess emission in the red wing (red asymmetry) before flare maximum, and excess in the blue wing (blue asymmetry) after maximum. However, the Ca I…
The origin of the near-ultraviolet and optical continuum radiation in flares is critical for understanding particle acceleration and impulsive heating in stellar atmospheres. Radiative-hydrodynamic simulations in 1D have shown that high energy deposition rates from electron beams produce two flaring layers at T~10^4 K that develop in the chromosphere: a cooling condensation (downflowing compression) and heated non-moving (stationary) flare layers just below the condensation. These atmospheres reproduce several observed phenomena in flare spectra, such as the red wing asymmetry of the emission …
We present new results from the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph showing the dynamic evolution of chromospheric evaporation and condensation in a flare ribbon, with the highest temporal and spatial resolution to date. IRIS observed the entire impulsive phase of the X-class flare SOL2014-09-10T17:45 using a 9.4 second cadence `sit-and-stare' mode. As the ribbon brightened successively at new positions along the slit, a unique impulsive phase evolution was observed for many tens of individual pixels in both coronal and chromospheric lines. Each activation of a new footpoint displays the sam…
Magnetic reconnection in the corona results in contracting flare loops, releasing energy into plasma heating and shocks. The hydrodynamic shocks so produced drive thermal conduction fronts (TCFs) which transport energy into the chromosphere and drive upflows (evaporation) and downflows (condensation) in the cooler, denser footpoint plasma. Observations have revealed that certain properties of the transition point between evaporation and condensation (the "flow reversal point" or FRP), such as temperature and velocity-temperature derivative at the FRP, vary between different flares. These prope…
We investigate the chromospheric evaporation in the flare of 2007 January 16 using line profiles observed by the EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) onboard Hinode. Three points at flare ribbons of different magnetic polarities are analyzed in detail. We find that the three points show different patterns of upflows and downflows in the impulsive phase of the flare. The spectral lines at the first point are mostly blue shifted, with the hotter lines showing a dominant blue-shifted component over the stationary one. At the second point, however, only weak upflows are detected; in stead, notable downf…
Magnetic reconnection is believed to be the dominant energy release mechanism in solar flares. The standard flare model predicts both downward and upward outflow plasmas with speeds close to the coronal Alfvén speed. Yet, spectroscopic observations of such outflows, especially the downflows, are extremely rare. With observations of the newly launched Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), we report the detection of greatly redshifted ($\sim$125 km s$^{-1}$ along line of sight) Fe {\sc{xxi}} 1354.08Å emission line with a $\sim$100 km s$^{-1}$ nonthermal width at the reconnection site of …
