Periodicities in Solar Coronal Mass Ejections
Mid-term quasi-periodicities in solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) during the mostrecent solar maximum cycle 23 are reported here for the ﬁrst time using the four-year data (February 5, 1999 to February 10, 2003) of the Large Angle SpectrometricCoronagraph (LASCO) onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). Inparallel, mid-term quasi-periodicities in solar X-ray ﬂares (class >M5.0) from theGeosynchronous Operational Environment Satellites (GOES) and in daily averages ofAp index for geomagnetic disturbances from the World Data Center (WDC) at theInternationalAssociation for Geomagnetism andAeronomy (IAGA)are alsoexaminedfor the same four-year time span. By Fourier power spectral analyses, the CME dataappears to contain signiﬁcant power peaks at periods of ∼ 358 ± 38, ∼ 272 ± 26,∼ 196±13 days and so forth, while except for the ∼ 259±24-day period, X-ray solarﬂares of class >∼ M5.0 show the familiar Rieger-type quasi-periods at ∼ 157 ± 11,∼ 122± 5, ∼ 98±3 days and shorter ones until ∼ 34±0.5 days. In the data of dailyaverages of Ap index, the two signiﬁcant peaks at periods ∼ 273±26 and ∼ 187±12days (the latter is most prominent) could imply that CMEs (periods at ∼ 272±26and∼ 196 ± 13 days) may be proportionally correlated with quasi-periodic geomagneticstorm disturbances; at the speculative level, the ∼ 138 ± 6-day period might implythat X-ray ﬂares of class >∼ M5.0 (period at ∼ 157±11 days) may drive certain typesof geomagnetic disturbances; and the ∼ 28±0.2-day periodicity is most likely causedby recurrent high-speed solar winds at the Earth’s magnetosphere. For the same threedata sets, we further perform Morlet wavelet analysis to derive period-time contoursand identify wavelet power peaks and timescales at the 99 percent conﬁdence level forcomparisons. Several conceptual aspects of possible equatorially trapped Rossby-typewaves at and beneath the solar photosphere are discussed. space weather — Sun: activities — corona — coronalmass ejections — magnetic ﬁelds

title: Magnetohydrodynamic Simulation of the Interaction between Interplanetary Strong Shock and Magnetic Cloud and its Consequent Geoeffectiveness 2: Oblique Collision
abstract: Numerical studies of the interplanetary “shock overtaking magnetic cloud (MC)” event are continued by a 2.5-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model in heliospheric meridional plane. Interplanetary direct collision (DC)/oblique collision (OC) between an MC and a shock results from their same/different initial propagation orientations. For radially erupted MC and shock in solar corona, the orientations are only determined respectively by their heliographic locations. OC is investigated in contrast with the results in DC (Xiong, 2006). The shock front behaves as a smooth arc. The cannibalized part of MC is highly compressed by the shock front along its normal. As the shock propagates gradually into the preceding MC body, the most violent interaction is transferred sideways with an accompanying significant narrowing of the MC's angular width. The opposite deflections of MC body and shock aphelion in OC occur simultaneously through the process of the shock penetrating the MC. After the shock's passage, the MC is restored to its oblate morphology. With the decrease of MC-shock commencement interval, the shock front at 1 AU traverses MC body and is responsible for the same change trend of the latitude of the greatest geoeffectiveness of MC-shock compound. Regardless of shock orientation, shock penetration location regarding the maximum geoeffectiveness is right at MC core on the condition of very strong shock intensity. An appropriate angular difference between the initial eruption of an MC and an overtaking shock leads to the maximum deflection of the MC body. The larger the shock intensity is, the greater is the deflection angle. The interaction of MCs with other disturbances could be a cause of deflected propagation of interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME).

title: Magnetohydrodynamic simulation of the interaction between interplanetary strong shock and magnetic cloud and its consequent geoeffectiveness
abstract: Numerical studies have been performed to interpret the observed “shock overtaking magnetic cloud (MC)” event by a 2.5 dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model in the heliospheric meridional plane. Results of an individual MC simulation show that the MC travels with a constant bulk flow speed. The MC is injected with a very strong inherent magnetic field over that in the ambient flow and expands rapidly in size initially. Consequently, the diameter of the MC increases in an asymptotic speed while its angular width contracts gradually. Meanwhile, simulations of MC-shock interaction are also presented, in which both a typical MC and a strong fast shock emerge from the inner boundary and propagate along the heliospheric equator, separated by an appropriate interval. The results show that the shock first catches up with the preceding MC, then penetrates through the MC, and finally merges with the MC-driven shock into a stronger compound shock. The morphologies of shock front in interplanetary space and MC body behave as a central concave and a smooth arc, respectively. The compression and rotation of the magnetic field serve as an efficient mechanism to cause a large geomagnetic storm. The MC is highly compressed by the overtaking shock. Contrarily, the transport time of the incidental shock influenced by the MC depends on the interval between their commencements. Maximum geoeffectiveness results from when the shock enters the core of preceding MC, which is also substantiated to some extent by a corresponding simplified analytic model. Quantified by the Dst index, the specific result is that the geoeffectiveness of an individual MC is largely enhanced with 80% increment in maximum by an incidental shock.

title: Magnetohydrodynamic simulation of the interaction between two interplanetary magnetic clouds and its consequent geoeffectiveness: 2. Oblique collision
abstract: The numerical studies of the interplanetary coupling between multiple magnetic clouds (MCs) are continued by a 2.5-dimensional ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model in the heliospheric meridional plane. The interplanetary direct collision (DC)/oblique collision (OC) between both MCs results from their same/different initial propagation orientations. Here the OC is explored in contrast to the results of the DC. Both the slow MC1 and fast MC2 are consequently injected from the different heliospheric latitudes to form a compound stream during the interplanetary propagation. The MC1 and MC2 undergo contrary deflections during the process of oblique collision. Their deflection angles of ∣δθ1∣ and ∣δθ2∣ continuously increase until both MC-driven shock fronts are merged into a stronger compound one. The ∣δθ1∣, ∣δθ2∣, and total deflection angle Δθ (Δθ = ∣δθ1∣ + ∣δθ2∣) reach their corresponding maxima when the initial eruptions of both MCs are at an appropriate angular difference. Moreover, with the increase of MC2's initial speed, the OC becomes more intense, and the enhancement of δθ1 is much more sensitive to δθ2. The ∣δθ1∣ is generally far less than the ∣δθ2∣, and the unusual case of ∣δθ1∣ ≃ ∣δθ2∣ only occurs for an extremely violent OC. But because of the elasticity of the MC body to buffer the collision, this deflection would gradually approach an asymptotic degree. As a result, the opposite deflection between the two MCs, together with the inherent magnetic elasticity of each MC, could efficiently relieve the external compression for the OC in the interplanetary space. Such a deflection effect for the OC case is essentially absent for the DC case. Therefore, besides the magnetic elasticity, magnetic helicity, and reciprocal compression, the deflection due to the OC should be considered for the evolution and ensuing geoeffectiveness of interplanetary interaction among successive coronal mass ejections.

title: The Relationship between the Sudden Change of the Lorentz Force and the Magnitude of Associated Flares
abstract: The rapid and irreversible change of photospheric magnetic fields associated with flares has been confirmed by many recent studies. These studies showed that the photospheric magnetic fields respond to coronal field restructuring and turn to a more horizontal state near the magnetic polarity inversion line (PIL) after eruptions. Recent theoretical work has shown that the change in the Lorentz force associated with a magnetic eruption will lead to such a field configuration at the photosphere. The Helioseismic Magnetic Imager has been providing unprecedented full-disk vector magnetograms covering the rising phase of the solar cycle 24. In this study, we analyze 18 flares in four active regions, with GOES X-ray class ranging from C4.7 to X5.4. We find that there are permanent and rapid changes of magnetic field around the flaring PIL, the most notable of which is the increase of the transverse magnetic field. The changes of fields integrated over the area and the derived change of Lorentz force both show a strong correlation with flare magnitude. It is the first time that such magnetic field changes have been observed even for C-class flares. Furthermore, for seven events with associated coronal mass ejections (CMEs), we use an estimate of themore » impulse provided by the Lorentz force, plus the observed CME velocity, to estimate the CME mass. We find that if the timescale of the back reaction is short, i.e., in the order of 10 s, the derived values of CME mass ({approx}10{sup 15} g) generally agree with those reported in literature.« less

title: Signature splitting in 173W with triaxial particle rotor model
abstract: A particle rotor model with a quasi-neutron coupled with a triaxially deformed rotor is applied to study signature splitting for bands with intruder orbital ν7/2+[633] and nonintruder orbital ν5/2-[512] in 173W. Excellent agreement with the observed energy spectra has been achieved for both bands. Signature splitting for band ν7/2+[633], and band ν5/2-[512] before the onset of signature inversion, is satisfactorily reproduced by introducing the γ degree of freedom. The phase and amplitude of signature splitting in band ν5/2-[512] are attributed to strong competition between 2f7/2 and 1h9/2 components. However, the self-consistent explanation of signature inversion in band ν5/2-[512] is beyond the present one quasi-neutron coupled with a triaxially deformed rotor.

title: Collapse of vacuum bubbles in a vacuum
abstract: We revisit the dynamics of a false vacuum bubble in a background de Sitter spacetime. We find that there exists a large parameter space that allows the bubble to collapse into a black hole or to form a wormhole. This may have interesting implications for the creation of a baby universe in the laboratory, the string landscape where the bubble nucleation takes place among a plenitude of metastable vacua, and the inflationary physics.

title: SIGMOID-TO-FLUX-ROPE TRANSITION LEADING TO A LOOP-LIKE CORONAL MASS EJECTION
abstract: Sigmoids are one of the most important precursor structures for solar eruptions. In this Letter, we study a sigmoid eruption on 2010 August 1 with EUV data obtained by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO). In AIA 94 A (Fe XVIII; 6 MK), topological reconfiguration due to tether-cutting reconnection is unambiguously observed for the first time, i.e., two opposite J-shaped loops reconnect to form a continuous S-shaped loop, whose central portion is dipped and aligned along the magnetic polarity inversion line (PIL), and a compact loop crossing the PIL. A causal relationship between photospheric flows and coronal tether-cutting reconnections is evidenced by the detection of persistent converging flows toward the PIL using line-of-sight magnetograms obtained by the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager on board SDO. The S-shaped loop remains in quasi-equilibrium in the lower corona for about 50 minutes, with the central dipped portion rising slowly at ~10 km s–1. The speed then increases to ~60 km s–1 about 10 minutes prior to the onset of a GOES-class C3.2 flare, as the S-shaped loop speeds up its transformation into an arch-shaped loop, which eventually leads to a loop-like coronal mass ejection. The AIA observations combined with Hα filtergrams as well as hard X-ray imaging and spectroscopy are consistent with most flare loops being formed by reconnection of the stretched legs of less-sheared J-shaped loops that envelopes the rising flux rope, in agreement with the standard tether-cutting scenario.

title: Recent studies on beam-photoelectron instability in BEPC
abstract: An experiment investigating the photoelectron instability has been performed in BEPC at IHEP, China. The betatron oscillation of each bunch was observed and recorded by a single pass beam position monitor system which has a capability to measure the transverse position of every bunch over 16000 turns. The effect of an octupole magnet on the instability was also studied. This paper describes results of those observations and analyses.