Plasma motions and non-thermal line broadening in flaring twisted coronal loops

Gordovskyy, M., Kontar, E.P. and Browning, P.K. (2016) Plasma motions and non-thermal line broadening in flaring twisted coronal loops. Astronomy and Astrophysics, 589, A104. (doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201527249)

Abstract

Context. Observation of coronal extreme ultra-violet (EUV) spectral lines sensitive to different temperatures offers an opportunity to evaluate the thermal structure and flows in flaring atmospheres. This, in turn, can be used to estimate the partitioning between the thermal and kinetic energies released in flares. Aims. Our aim is to forward-model large-scale (50–10 000 km) velocity distributions to interpret non-thermal broadening of different spectral EUV lines observed in flares. The developed models allow us to understand the origin of the observed spectral line shifts and broadening, and link these features to particular physical phenomena in flaring atmospheres. Methods. We use ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) to derive unstable twisted magnetic fluxtube configurations in a gravitationally stratified atmosphere. The evolution of these twisted fluxtubes is followed using resistive MHD with anomalous resistivity depending on the local density and temperature. The model also takes thermal conduction and radiative losses in the continuum into account. The model allows us to evaluate average velocities and velocity dispersions, which would be interpreted as non-thermal velocities in observations, at different temperatures for different parts of the models. Results. Our models show qualitative and quantitative agreement with observations. Thus, the line-of-sight (LOS) velocity dispersions demonstrate substantial correlation with the temperature, increasing from about 20–30 km s-1 around 1 MK to about 200–400 km s-1 near 10–20 MK. The average LOS velocities also correlate with velocity dispersions, although they demonstrate a very strong scattering compared to the observations. We also note that near footpoints the velocity dispersions across the magnetic field are systematically lower than those along the field. We conclude that the correlation between the flow velocities, velocity dispersions, and temperatures are likely to indicate that the same heating mechanism is responsible for heating the plasma, its turbulisation, and expansion/evaporation.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This work is funded by Science and Technology Facilities Council (UK) (STFC).
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Kontar, Professor Eduard
• Authors: Gordovskyy, M., Kontar, E.P., and Browning, P.K.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Physics and Astronomy
• Journal Name: Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Publisher: EDP Sciences
• ISSN: 0004-6361
• ISSN (Online): 1432-0746
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2016 ESO
• First Published: First published in Astronomy and Astrophysics 589: A104
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy

Related URLs

• arXiv