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30-Day Science Plan

30-Day Science Plan. Angelos Vourlidas, Russ Howard SECCHI Consortium Meeting IAS 8 March 2007. STEREO Science Objectives. STEREO is the first mission dedicated to understanding the physics of CMEs

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30-Day Science Plan

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  1. 30-Day Science Plan Angelos Vourlidas, Russ Howard SECCHI Consortium Meeting IAS 8 March 2007

  2. STEREO Science Objectives • STEREO is the first mission dedicated to understanding the physics of CMEs • While CMEs have been well observed, fundamental questions still remain and are addressed by the STEREO mission level-1 science requirements: • Understand the causes and mechanisms of CME initiation • Characterize the propagation of CMEs through the Heliosphere • Discover the mechanisms and sites of energetic particle acceleration in the low corona and the interplanetary medium • Improve determination of the structure of the ambient solar wind • All previous observations of CMEs have been restricted to the sun-earth line. Thus our view of CMEs has been projected onto a plane. STEREO will remove this deficiency by adding a second spacecraft with a significant separation, enabling the 3D nature of CMEs to be revealed • STEREO will also provide concept verification for the LWS program by providing a real-time space weather input

  3. 30 Day Questions • It has been traditional to define a set of the major questions that needed to be addressed in the first days of a mission. • Since STEREO has a varying separation angle, our questions don’t fit nicely into a single calendar time period. • Therefore the “30 day” designation should only be thought of as the major questions that we want to address during the mission

  4. 30 Day Science Questions (1) • Morphology • What is the 3D pre-CME configuration? • What is the 3D nature of AR loops? QS Loops? Inter-AR loops? Transequatorial Loops? • What is the 3D nature of plumes? • What is the 3D nature of coronal holes? • What is the 3D nature of coronal streamers? • How do these quiescent structures evolve? • What is the 3D Structure of CMEs • In the low corona? • In the middle corona? • In the IPM?

  5. 30 Day Science Questions (2) • CME Initiation • How does the pre-CME configuration evolve to initiate a CME? • What is the relative timing of the phenomena associated with the liftoff of CMEs? • What is the role of flares, prominence/filament eruptions? • What is the role of coronal cavities in the initiation/propagation? • What is the mechanism(s) for the CME initiation and liftoff? • What is the initial acceleration profile? What are the forces involved? • Is there evidence for reconnection and what is its role? • How is the pre-CME energy partitioned and how does it repartition? • Where does the mass originate?

  6. 30 Day Science Questions (3) • Propagation/Interaction with the Heliosphere • What is the “real” CME speed? • What is the “real” 3D acceleration/deceleration profile? • Where and why do the fast CMEs decelerate to the solar wind speeds? • Where does the shock form and what is its 3D nature? • Where do the various radio (metric, dm, etc) Type II emissions originate? • How does the CME interact with streamers in 3D? • How does the 3D structure of the CME evolve as it propagates? • Where and how are SEP particles accelerated? • What is the 3D structure of magnetic clouds? • What is the 3D structure of complex events? Merged events? • What are the key characteristics for geoeffective CMEs?

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