Blinkers: what is their true nature?

The link is:
http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/eisnuggets.jsp

We welcome contributions from the community. If you would like to contribute please contact us.

Dr Deb Baker
UCL/MSSL
db2 at mssl.ucl.ac.uk

The due date for proposal submissions is: 20 June 2012.

Full details at http://smsc.cnes.fr/PICARD/A_research_announcement.htm

http://smsc.cnes.fr/PICARD/A_research_announcement.htm

Once more, we’d like to thank Iain Hannah for all his hard work!

Above all, the School is looking for high-quality, motivated researchers who are conducting REF-driven research. If this sounds like you, then I encourage you to apply.

Visit :

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/cei1112

for full details, job description, application form, etc.

Closing date: 7 June 2012

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/cei1112

Thus, candidates who can demonstrate that they have the necessary skills in applied mathematics, and are active researchers in Solar Physics/Magnetohydrodynamics are strongly encouraged to apply. If you are interested, feel free to phone me (0191-227-3667) or email me ( james.a.mclaughlin@northumbria.ac.uk ) and I can let you know more details.

Above all, the School is looking for high-quality, motivated researchers who are conducting REF-driven research. If this sounds like you, then I encourage you to apply.

Please visit :
http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/cei1113
for full details, job description, application form, etc.

Closing date: 7 June 2012

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/cei1113

The Centre for Plasma Astrophysics (CPA) of the Katholieke Universiteit
Leuven (Belgium) accepts applications for postodoctoral positions within the
framework of the eHEROES consortium funded by the European Commission within
the FP7 program (eheroes.eu). eHeroes encompasses 15 centers in 12 European
countries.

The activities will focus on the development of physical-mathematical models,
algorithms and software to study the solar wind, space weather and its impact
on the Earth-Moon system and on missions of exploration to the Moon and Mars.
The work will be theoretical, focusing on pencil and paper derivations and on
computer simulations. The work will be based on the extensive previous
expertise in the field of high performance computing, space science and its
application to space weather at the CPA and within the eHeroes consortium.

We will give precedence to candidates with previous expertise in at least one
of the following areas:
- Solar physics,
- Magnetospheric physics
- Solar wind
- The physics of the Moon space environment
- Planning missions of exploration
- Expertise on computer programming with C, C++ or Fortran.
- Plasma physics, astrophysics or space physics,
- Numerical methods for fluid dynamics, MHD and kinetic physics particle in
cell methods.

The researchers will have access to large parallel computer facilities and to
a stimulating research environment within the CPA and the eHeroes consortium.
The researchers will be employed by the KU Leuven, but collaborations with
other centers of eHeroes and with the Intel Exascience Lab (exascience.com)
are encouraged.

The work place is Leuven, a historic university town (our university is one
of the oldest in Europe, founded in 1425) located just 20 minutes from the
center of Brussel and 15 minutes from the Brussel airport, making it easily
reachable to travelers. Leuven is an international city located in the
Flemish (Dutch speaking) part of Belgium where English and French are spoken
routinely in all places (from University and public offices to shops and
entertainment venues).

Informal enquiries are welcome and should be made to Prof. Giovanni Lapenta
(tel: +32 16 327965), or by e-mail at: Giovanni.lapenta [AT] wis.kuleuven.be.
A formal application should be made by uploading the required documents (see
below) at:
http://phd.kuleuven.be/set/postdoc/voorstellen.php?group=50000403

Employment details:
- Salary: starts at 24,000 Euro net salary (depending on qualifications)
- Duration: One year, renewable for three years after positive evaluation.
- Application Closing Date: Position will be filled as soon as possible.
- KU Leuven is committed to equality of opportunity.

An application should include:
- A cover letter expressing the candidate‚s research background, including a
clear indication of the level of expertise in the areas mentioned in the job
description above,
- A curriculum vitae detailing personal information, English language skills,
the degrees obtained and the major research achievements,
- The names of two contact persons willing to provide a recommendation letter,
- A complete list of publications listing peer-reviewed publications and
other types of scientific communications (clearly distinguish between both),
- A statement of when you are able to fill the position.

University Lectureship in Astrophysics

Applications are invited for a University Lectureship in Astrophysics to be held at DAMTP. Candidates should have an outstanding record of research in an area relevant to the research interests of the Astrophysics Group.

For more information about this see:
http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/vacancy/Astrophysics.pdf

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/Solar_energetic_electron_events_over_one_solar_cycle

Further details can be found at:

http://jobs.leeds.ac.uk (Reference MAPMA0028)

http://jobs.leeds.ac.uk (Reference MAPMA0028)

15 May – e-MERLIN Steering Committee, Manchester / JBO
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

22 May – Challenge Led Applied Systems Panel (CLASP) Environment Focus Meeting – Medical Research Council, London
STFC contact : Rachael.jack@stfc.ac.uk

29 May – Facility Users Public Engagement Symposium – Diamond House, RAL – STFC Contact Neville.hollingworth@stfc.ac.uk

31 May – UKIRT Board, UK ATC
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

6 – 8 June – Projects Peer Review Panel, Polaris House, Swindon
Chair : Mark Thomson, Thomson@hep.phy.cam.ac.uk
STFC contact : Sharmila.Banerjee@stfc.ac.uk

11 – 13 June – PPGP (Experimental) Consolidated Grants Review Meeting, Polaris House, Swindon
STFC contact – rachel.reynolds@stfc.ac.uk

12 – 13 June MICE/UKNF Oversight Committee, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Didcot
STFC contact: Charlotte.jamieson@stfc.ac.uk

14 June – Nuclear Structure Astrophysics and Reactions (NuSTAR) Oversight Committee, Polaris House, Swindon
STFC contact – dave.godfrey@stfc.ac.uk

15 June – United Kingdom Committee on CERN, BIS, London
STFC contact – charlotte.jamieson@stfc.ac.uk

18 June –Judges meeting for Small Awards for projects in Public Engagement – MRC, London
STFC contact : chris.woolford@stfc.ac.uk

20 June – CERN Finance Committee, CERN, Geneva
STFC contact – charlotte.jamieson@stfc.ac.uk

21 June– Isaac Newton Group (ING) Board, Leiden University, The Netherlands
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

25 – 26 June – JCMT Board, Vancouver, Canada
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

July (date tbc) – Innovations Partnership Scheme (IPS) meeting, venue to be confirmed
STFC contact : Andi.Kidd@stfc.ac.uk

July (date tbc) – Challenge Led Applied Systems Panel – (CLASP) Environment Information Event – Royal College of Physicians, London
STFC contact : Rachael.jack@stfc.ac.uk

2 July – Education, Training & Careers Committee Meeting, Polaris House, Swindon
Chairperson: Professor Andrew Liddle a.liddle@sussex.ac.uk
STFC contact: Clare Heseltine clare.heseltine@stfc.ac.uk

3 – 8 July – Royal Society Summer Exhibition (4 STFC related exhibits) – 6-9 Carlton House Terrace, London
STFC contact: chris.woolford@stfc.ac.uk

5 – 6 July – Science Board, venue to be confirmed
STFC contact : Victoria.Wright@stfc.ac.uk

voting for the UKSP council elections is now open. We are electing (upto) 2 PDRA members for UKSP council.

Voting will close at 23.59 on Tuesday 14th May 2012.

You can find the candidate statements on:

http://www-solar.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/~ineke/UKSP_Election2012/uksp_election2012.html

Or go straight to the election pages and follow the instructions on:

http://www.ballotbin.com/voterReg.php?b=33281

Cheers
ineke

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/A_Shocking_Type_II

Distinguished for her scientific leadership of the international NASA-ESA-ASI Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn and its moons. As Principal Investigator of the operation, data collection and analysis of observations from the magnetic field instrument onboard the Cassini spacecraft she was responsible for major advances in our understanding of the physics of the Saturn system. Her discovery of a dynamic and exotic atmosphere of water constituents and hydrocarbons at Saturn’s moon Enceladus revolutionized our perspective of the role of planetary moons in the solar system and has opened up entire new areas of planetary research. This discovery has driven plans for new spacecraft missions to Saturn’s moons, including the search for life in other parts of the solar system.

Many congratulations Michele!!

A solar twister appears as mass and magnetic flux are injected into the corona

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=4457

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UKSP Nuggets are published on a monthly basis highlighting solar physics research in the UK.

http://www.uksolphys.org/uksp-nuggets

Iain Hannah and Lyndsay Fletcher

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=4457

April 2012 Nugget:
http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/nuggets/nugget_2012apr.jsp

Nugget Archive:
http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/eisnuggets.jsp

EIS nuggets are published monthly. If you would like to contribute a nugget, please contact Deb Baker or Lucie Green.

Dr Deb Baker
UCL/MSSL

Research Assistant / Associate
Ref: 001681
Salary: Grade 6/7 £26,004 – £29,249 / £31,948 – £35,938 per annum

Based at the University of Glasgow in collaboration with members of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Group and other members of the FP7-funded HESPE network, (i.e. University of Genova, University of Graz, Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, CNRS and University of California, Berkeley), you will undertake high-quality research in solar physics and in particular the acquisition, analysis, interpretation and modelling of solar flare hard X-ray data.

With up to date knowledge and demonstrable experience in solar flare X-ray observations or theory you will also assist in the activities of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Group as requested by the Investigators and Head of School.

Informal enquiries should be directed to:
Dr Lyndsay Flecther,
Email: Lyndsay.Fletcher@glasgow.ac.uk
and
Dr Eduard Kontar
Email: Eduard.Kontar@glasgow.ac.uk

This position has funding for 12 months in the first instance.

Apply online at www.glasgow.ac.uk/jobs

Closing date: 21 May 2012

The University is committed to equality of opportunity in employment.
The University of Glasgow, charity number SC004401.

The post is available from September 1st, 2012. The salary will be in the Lecturer range: £37,012 to £44,166 commensurate with accomplishment and experience.

For further details about the vacancy, job description/person specification and how to apply on line please go to http://www.ucl.ac.uk/hr/jobs/ and search on Reference Number 1247038. A full CV, publication list and a statement of future research aspirations is required.

Further details about MSSL can be found on http://www.mssl.ucl.ac.uk/ For further information regarding the post contact Prof. Christopher J. Owen (cjo@mssl.ucl.ac.uk). If you have any queries regarding the vacancy or the application process, please contact (Libby Daghorn), (ead@mssl.ucl.ac.uk), tel: 01483 204 110.

The closing date for applications is 23rd May 2012

Author: Xing Li, Huw Morgan, Drew Leonard and Lauren Jeska
Institute of Mathematics and Physics, Aberystwyth University

<< previous nugget — next nugget >>

Introduction

Reports of rotational or tornado-like behaviour of solar prominences and/or their associated cavities have been made for almost a century.  These include ground-based observations of rotational eddies within prominences [5,3], spectroscopic evidence of filament rotation [4], tornado-like jets within prominences, and rotation of prominence cavities [8]. The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) provides the necessary temporal and spatial resolution, and long-term systematic full-disk observations to view and interpret such events in detail.

Observations

On 25th September 2011 a small and unremarkable crown polar prominence rotated into view on the south-west limb. As is typical, this prominence was cradled within a dark extended cavity. At 02:30 on the 25th, the whole structure experienced a large-scale wobble, and small bright blobs appear in the cavity above the prominence. Dark fibrils at the base of the prominence became very active, and by 06:00 the filament and cavity developed a distinct tornado-like appearance, with a large circular structure atop a narrower pillar.

From 10:00, there was a large new injection of material into the filament base and for the next few hours spectacular dynamics occurred within the prominence and cavity (See Fig. 1). Streaks and blobs of varying brightness followed circular paths counter-clockwise  around the top of the filament pillar  inside  what was formerly a dark cavity.  The blobs of material flowing into this area traced out magnetic structures that were previously invisible.

At first material moved along a thin channel, but by 10:10 the thin channel had already widened and a helix-like structure with at least seven turns was very obvious. The injection of such tightly wound helices was repeated at about 11:00, and of less tightly wound helices at 11:45. The very core of the tornado head was bright and complex, with strange slow rotation and movements of filamentary structure. By 18:00 the head of the tornado dimmed, the rotational movement stopped and by 00:00 on 26th September the tornado disappeared, leaving wispy strands extending at obtuse angles relative to the radial into the region previously occupied by the filament pillar. The main period of coherent rotation lasted for approximately 3 hours.

Properties of the tornado plasma

Local Correlation Tracking (LCT) and manual methods reveals speeds of as high as 55km/s to 95km/s within the tornado – smaller than the sound speed. The flow gains speed substantially, even when it ascends against gravity, suggesting that magnetic tension forces play an important role in accelerating the flow. From viewing the tornado in several channels of the AIA instrument, and its appearance in ground-based H-alpha observations, the material flowing within the structure contains ions at a large range of formation temperatures. Throughout the whole period of tornado formation and rotation, the emission in the 304A channel is almost identical to that of the hotter 171A channel.

Figure 1: Evolution and rotation of the tornado as seen in the AIA 171 channel over 4 hours starting 25th September 2011 08:20.

Discussion and Conclusions

The complex appearance of the coherent rotation can be interpreted as injections of helical magnetic fluxes into the filament and cavity, and subsequent sporadic injections of material along the helical structures. When an injected helical flux tube is tightly wound, it may be unable to maintain stability and is eventually injected or simply untwists into the surrounding cavity. The filament and cavity are extended helical flux ropes along the line of sight, and as material moves along the helical structures, the observed motion is that of rotation. The innermost prominence looks narrow and tangled whilst the surrounding cavity is more loosely wound. This supports the view that tangled flux tubes and flow give favourable conditions for the mass supply and maintenance of a prominence. The line-of-sight integration of emission from such tangled helices gives a very complicated appearance in observations.

Observations of the large circular motions and flows originating from a narrow channel may shed some light to the question why a cavity exists above a prominence. If most of the magnetic field flux in the cavity is rooted in a small region in the lower atmosphere, then the supply of plasma may simply be insufficient to fill the cavity unless there a dramatic injection of material caused by some catastrophic event at the prominence base. The general (quiescent) case would therefore be of a dark cavity devoid of plasma due to the restrictive geometry of the flux tube at low heights.

The dynamics and shape of this prominence and cavity are significantly larger, more complex and coherent than several other eruptive features reported: erupting prominences [2], rotational spicules [7], helical `EUV sprays’ [1], and emerging helical prominences [5]. This prominence contains plasma at both cool (10⁴ K) and hot coronal temperatures suggesting that the flows are driven by the same mechanism as in emerging prominences [5], which are quite cool.

Questions for the future

Interesting questions which arise from this event are:

• What mechanism drives the injection of magnetic helices and/or material into the prominence and cavity?
• Are the brightness enhancements which we see flowing within the confines of the helical structures blobs of material or density waves?
• What exactly is the structural relationship between a prominence and associated cavity? Do current models account for all cases?
• Why does this structure not erupt?
• Will the observations of SDO show such tornadoes to be common events? We have found several tornadoes during the past few months, but none as coherent and spectacular as the 25th September event.

References

• [1] Harrison, R. A., Bryans, P., & Bingham, R. 2001, A&A, 379, 324
• [2] Kurokawa, H., Hanaoka, Y., Shibata, K., & Uchida, Y. 1987, Sol. Phys., 108, 251
• [3] Liggett, M., & Zirin, H. 1984, Sol. Phys., 91, 259
• [4] Öhman, Y. 1969, Sol. Phys., 9, 427
• [5] Okamoto, T. J., Tsuneta, S., & Berger, T. E. 2010, ApJ, 719, 583
• [6] Pettit, E. 1925, Publications of the Yerkes Observatory, 3, 4
• [7] Pike, C. D., & Mason, H. E. 1998, Sol. Phys., 182, 333
• [8] Wang, Y., et al. 2010, ApJ, 717, 973

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/vco1102

2012 marks Northumbria’s 20th anniversary as a university and to mark the occasion we are recruiting six Anniversary Research Fellows across a number of research areas. One of the chosen research areas is “Applied Mathematics” (although successful candidates will be selected according to the excellence of their research profile and research plans, regardless of their area of interest).

Dr James McLaughlin recently joined the University as senior lecturer in Applied Mathematics, and so “Solar Physics”, “Magnetohydrodynamics” and “Mathematical Modelling of Solar Phenomena” are now all active and valid research areas within the University. The University is looking for high-quality, motivated researchers who are conducting REF-driven research. If this sounds like you, then I encourage you to apply.

Candidates should complete the application form and include a list of relevant publications as well as details of their research interests.

For an informal discussion about the post, please contact Dr James McLaughlin (james.a.mclaughlin@northumbria.ac.uk ).

Closing date: 24 May 2012

http://work4.northumbria.ac.uk/hrvacs/vco1102

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/RHESSI_and_IRIS

3 – 4 April – Innovations Partnerships Scheme (IPS) peer review meeting, Royal college of Physicians, London.
STFC contact : Andi.kidd@stfc.ac.uk

12 – 13 April – Particle Physics Grants Panel (Experiment), Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Didcot
STFC contact : Rachel.Reynolds@stfc.ac.uk

16 April – Liverpool Telescope Oversight Committee, ARI, Liverpool John Moores University
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

19 – 20 April – Science Board Meeting, Polaris House, Swindon
STFC contact : Jenny.Hiscock@stfc.ac.uk

26 April – UK ALMA Oversight Committee, Cardiff
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

15 May – e-MERLIN Steering Committee, Manchester / JBO
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

29 May – STFC Facility Users Public Engagement Symposium – Diamond House, RAL
STFC contact : Neville.hollingworth@stfc.ac.uk

31 May – UKIRT Board, UK ATC
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

June (date tbc) – ING Board, The Netherlands
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

6 – 8 June – Projects Peer Review Panel, Polaris House, Swindon
Chair : Mark Thomson, Thomson@hep.phy.cam.ac.uk
STFC contact : Sharmila.Banerjee@stfc.ac.uk

11 – 13 June – PPGP (Experimental) Consolidated Grants Review Meeting, Polaris House, Swindon
STFC contact : rachel.reynolds@stfc.ac.uk

14 June – NuStar Oversight Committee, Polaris House, Swindon
STFC contact : dave.godfrey@stfc.ac.uk

15 June – United Kingdom Committee on CERN, BIS, London
STFC contact : charlotte.jamieson@stfc.ac.uk

18 June –Judges meeting for Small Awards for projects in Public Engagement – MRC, London
STFC contact : chris.woolford@stfc.ac.uk

20 June – CERN Finance Committee, CERN, Geneva
STFC contact : charlotte.jamieson@stfc.ac.uk

25 – 26 June – JCMT Board, Vancouver, Canada
STFC contact : Michelle.Cooper@stfc.ac.uk

The tasks in this postdoctoral project are the analysis of Hinode/EIS and SDO/AIA observations, studying oscillatory phenomena, using the results of the forward modelling that has been performed earlier in the project.

A PhD in Astrophysics (or closely related subject) is desirable, with a specialisation in solar physics. Prior experience with the analysis of oscillatory time series and spectral data is a plus.

You will receive a scholarship for one year, which can be extended after successful evaluation to a total of two years. The position starts October 1, 2012 (or soon thereafter). Applications must include a letter of interest, a CV, a list of publications and the name of two referees. Application is through the online webpage of Arenberg Doctoral School (http://phd.kuleuven.be/set/postdoc/voorstellen.php?group=50000403, look for advert with title “Analysis and modelling of oscillatory processes using SDO and/or Hinode observations”)

Deadline:
2012-05-31

Contact:
Tom Van Doorsselaere (tom.vandoorsselaere@wis.kuleuven.be)

http://phd.kuleuven.be/set/postdoc/voorstellen.php?group=50000403

The tasks in this PhD project are twofold:
- To further extend the forward models for the waves, using existing codes and existing models. To search explicitly for distinguishing features between different wave modes, configurations and orientations.
- To validate the forward models against spectral and imaging data from Hinode/EIS and SDO/AIA, and use the emission models to perform seismology.

Candidates should have a Master in Mathematics/Astronomy/Physics. Preferentially the PhD student has prior experience with the analysis of time-variable astrophysical/spectroscopic data.

You will receive a scholarship for one or two years, which can be extended after successful evaluation to a total of four years. The position starts October 1, 2012 (or later). You are expected to complete your PhD within the 4 year time frame. Applications must include a letter of interest, a CV with clear indication of achieved grades and the name of two reference professors. Application is through the online webpage of Arenberg Doctoral School (http://phd.kuleuven.be/set/voorstellen_departement?departement=50000430, advert with reference 50000403v7024)

Deadline:
2012-05-31

Contact:
Tom Van Doorsselaere (tom.vandoorsselaere@wis.kuleuven.be)

http://phd.kuleuven.be/set/voorstellen_departement?departement=50000430

I would like to advertise the Call for Applications for the JAXA International Top Young Fellowship 2012.

The ITYF is designed to attract outstanding, highly motivated, young researchers in any of the space science fields covered by ISAS/JAXA to work in Japan for 3 (extendable to 5) years. The excellent remuneration package includes research budget and travel support so that the Fellow can extend their international profile, as well as developing collaborations within Japan.

Please visit these sites for details of the fellowship and the application process:

http://www.isas.jaxa.jp/e/researchers/young-fellowship/index.shtml
http://www.jaxa.jp/employ/index_e.html

The deadline for applications is 30 April 2012.

Thanks,
Sarah

Dr Sarah V. Badman
JAXA International Research Fellow
Institute of Space and Astronautical Science
3-1-1 Yoshinodai, Chuo-ku, Sagamihara-shi,
Kanagawa 252-5210, Japan

s.badman@stp.isas.jaxa.jp

http://proteus.space.noa.gr/~hnswrn

Applications are invited for fully-funded PhD studentships at the Astronomy Unit, Queen Mary University of London (QMUL).

The Astronomy Unit conducts research over a broad range of astronomy and astrophysics from solar system to large scale Universe. With major involvement in international projects, modern high performance computing facilities and a lively research community, we offer an outstanding environment in which to study for a research degree.

In the Astronomy Unit, there are groups working in Cosmology, Gravitation & Relativity; Formation and Dynamics of Planetary Systems; Solar and Stellar Physics; Space and Astrophysical Plasmas; and Survey Astronomy. For further details how to apply in all fields of research see: http://astro.qmul.ac.uk/ and
http://astro.qmul.ac.uk/phd/how-apply

Specific projects being offered in the Solar Physics area are:

Solar coronal heating problem; Studies of various wave modes in inhomogeneous space plasmas and collisionless magnetic reconnection; solar flares; particle acceleration by dispersive Alfven waves in the transversely inhomogeneous plasma in the context of solar flares and magnetospheric physics, using particle-in-cell numerical simulation; theoretical modelling of radio emission from solar flare electrons and forthcoming radio data analysis of Type III solar radio bursts from Chilbolton LOFAR Station http://www.lofar-uk.org/

If interested in the above exciting or similar projects do apply via

http://www.qmul.ac.uk/qmul/courses/courses.php?dept_id=16&pgcourses=2&course_id=685&course_level=1&article_id=278

Adress informal inquries to Dr David Tsiklauri
d.tsiklauri at qmul.ac.uk
The deadline for applications is 30 April 2012.

http://ph.qmul.ac.uk/d.tsiklauri

For more details:
http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/AEE598/temporary-lectureship-in-applied-mathematics/.

Runners up were Natasha Jeffrey (University of Glasgow and David Kuridze (Queen’s University Belfast)

In addition, we have received continuation of our funding from STFC to help the UK solar physics community exploit this reserved time. Specifically, we provide:

- Support for proposal preparation, including advice on ROSA capabilities and performance. We also provide advice on other NSO instrumentation that may be used in conjunction with ROSA, such as the Fabry-Perots on the DST.

- Observing support at the DST for the full duration of the observing run.

- All ROSA data reduction, including the application of PFIR techniques to provide proposers with diffraction-limited data ready for analysis. Alternatively, for groups with experience in the reduction of ground-based solar imaging data, we can provide a complete set of ROSA pipeline reduction software for installation at the proposer’s institute.

- Access to a range of software tools that may be used for the automated detection and tracking of solar features at the diffraction limit.

Details of ROSA may be found on our website:

http://star.pst.qub.ac.uk/rosa

and in our article in the June 2011 issue of Astronomy and Geophysics (Keenan, Mathioudakis and Jess, 2011, A&G, 52, 3.29), which also contains information on recent ROSA upgrades. The article is available at:

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1468-4004.2011.52329.x/full

If you are interested in the possible use of ROSA for your research programmes, or even if you just wish some further information, please email Prof Mihalis Mathioudakis in the first instance (m.mathioudakis@qub.ac.uk).

Chair/Reader in Astrophysics(http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/AEE425/chair-reader-in-astrophysics)

University of Surrey
Closing date: Monday April 30 2012

Lectureship/Senior Lectureships in Astrophysics (http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/AEE420/lectureship-senior-lectureships-in-astrophysics)

University of Surrey
Closing date: Saturday May 26 2012
For informal confidential enquiries about any of these posts, please contact:

Professor Paul Sellin
Head of Department,
Department of Physics,
University of Surrey
Guildford GU2 7XH, UK

Tel: 01483 686814
Fax: 01483 686781
Web: www.surrey.ac.uk/physics/research/astro

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/A_New_Day_Dawns

Non-LTE radiative transfer models help us to understand intensity variations observed by SDO/AIA in prominence eruptions

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=4247

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UKSP Nuggets are published on a monthly basis highlighting solar physics research in the UK.

http://www.uksolphys.org/uksp-nuggets

Iain Hannah and Lyndsay Fletcher

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=4247

Informal enquiries to:
Prof. Y. Elsworth (Y.P.Elsworth@bham.ac.uk)
Prof. W. J. Chaplin (W.J.Chaplin@bham.ac.uk)

We are seeking an active researcher to work on analysis of
helioseismology data collected by the Birmingham Solar-Oscillations
Network (BiSON), as well as other satellite and ground-based global
helioseismic observations. The focus of the analysis will be on
solar-cycle studies. The successful applicant will play a prominent
role in international collaborations. As a member of the BiSON team,
the successful applicant will also be involved in network operations,
including having responsibility for quality control and calibration of
data.

Applicants should be qualified in Physics, Astronomy or Mathematics to
PhD level and experience in data analysis. A background in
helioseismology, in particular in studies of solar-type stars, would
be extremely advantageous. Familiarity with optical instrumentation
would also be desirable.

Starting salary on scale £27,578 a year, depending on experience and
qualifications. This post is available from April 2012, for a period
of up to 36 months.

Application forms (returnable by 18 April) and details from Personnel
Services, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15
2TT; tel: 0121 414 6486; web: http://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/jobs/
Please quote reference 43840.

Authors: Kristopher McGlinchey and Nicolas Labrosse
SUPA, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Glasgow.

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Introduction

Theory predicts that when a solar prominence erupts into the corona, the intensity of the He II line at 304 Å will decrease as a function of the radial velocity of the plasma [1,2]. This predicted change in the radiation output is due to the so-called Doppler dimming effect. Doppler dimming is the decrease in intensity of an atomic resonance line that is pumped by external radiation, when the plasma in which it forms moves so that the pump line is Doppler shifted out of resonance (in the moving frame).

Observations

We studied 4 events on 13th June 2010 (a movie of which is shown in Figure 1), 8th September 2010, 19th March 2011 and 10th June 2011. An image cadence of 1 minute was used, apart from for the slowly-evolving 13th June 2010 event, for which an image cadence of 15 minutes was adequate. For each event, a feature in the prominence plasma was chosen that could be tracked confidently through many images. For the 10-06-11 event, two separate parts of the prominence were tracked. The intensities shown in Figure 2 are the nearest-neighbour averaged intensities, corrected for the exposure time and then normalised by the intensity corresponding to the lowest velocity (which is not necessarily at the beginning of the tracking). These normalised intensities can then be compared to those calculated from non-LTE models of the process (i.e. radiative transfer calculations out of local thermodynamic equilibrium).

Figure 2. AIA observations at 304 Å (left column) and relative intensity versus velocity graph (right column) of the 2011-06-10 (top) and 2010-06-13 (bottom) prominence eruptions. The field of view in the images are approximately 285x285. The time evolution is coded in color (with the time-scale indicated on the right of the plot). Click on each panel for a full-size image.

It was found that for three of the cases studied, the intensity does indeed decrease as velocity increases, as set out by theoretical models. However, for one of the events the opposite is found to be true, in that there is an increase in He II line intensity as velocity increases.

Modelling

Earlier modeling [1,2] assumed that plasma parameters stays constant during an eruption, but we can expect that the plasma conditions change during an eruption. So we have carried out new theoretical modelling, in which the plasma parameters (such as temperature, column mass, pressure) are allowed to vary. 100 new models were computed, each having varying input plasma parameters. The model corresponding to the lowest velocity was chosen as a reference model and the line intensities for all other models were normalised to the line intensity obtained with that reference model. With this, we can investigate whether the models reproduce the observed intensity behaviour.

Figure 3. Effect of the column mass of the model on the relative intensities of the He II 304 Å line (normalised to the intensity of the reference model where the prominence is at rest) as a function of the radial velocity of the prominence. The solid line shows the variation of intensity with radial velocity when all the model parameters are kept constant. Click on figure for full-size image.

As illustrated in Figure 3, it was found that when the plasma parameters are allowed to vary, there were roughly the same number of models where the He II line intensity increases with radial velocity as models where the intensity decreases with radial velocity. We also found that for the higher intensity models, 79% have a larger column mass than the reference model, and for the dimmer models 67% have a smaller column mass than the reference model. These calculations therefore give an idea of how variations of the physical conditions in the prominence plasma can affect the radiative output of He II resonance lines. It turns out that the main parameters that will determine whether the intensity of the He II line increases or decreases with radial velocity are the evolution of the column mass, and also the evolution of the temperature inside the prominence.

Conclusions

The observational results do not contradict the initial theoretical calculations that prompted this investigation, rather they highlight the need for more detailed calculations such as the ones considered in this study. The results show that investigating eruptive prominences in this way could provide a diagnostic tool for probing conditions in the plasma. We are now studying how we can improve the technique by adding another line such as the hydrogen Lyman alpha line, which should be observed by the EUI imager on Solar Orbiter.

More information on the data analysis and the modelling procedure can be found in [3].

Special thanks go to the Nuffield Foundation for funding part of this research.

References

• [1] Labrosse N. et al, 2007, A&A 463, 1171–1179
• [2] Labrosse N. et al, 2008, Ann. Geophys., 26, 2961-2965
• [3] Labrosse N. & McGlinchey K., 2012, A&A, 537, A100

http://solar.epsdivisions.org/news/call-for-proposals-to-host-the-next-european-solar-physics-meeting-in-2014-espm-14

Letter of Intent submission deadline: April 13, 2012
Proposal submission deadline: June 1, 2012

http://solar.epsdivisions.org/news/call-for-proposals-to-host-the-next-european-solar-physics-meeting-in-2014-espm-14

Please note the following link, giving information about a PhD studentship available at the University of Oslo.

http://uio.easycruit.com/vacancy/711955/64282?iso=no

This announcement was circulated by Prof. Joeran Moen:

Prof. Jøran Moen
Dept. of Physics
University of Oslo
E-mail: jmoen@fys.uio.no

Dear Colleague,

On behalf of the Director of Science and Robotic Exploration I am pleased to announce the release of a Call for Small Missions in ESA’s Science Programme, that has been published today (see http://sci.esa.int/2012-S-Call). Please refer to the attached “Dear Colleague” letter for further detail [SEE SEPARATE EMAIL]. Please circulate this information among all potentially interested colleagues.

Regards,

Fabio Favata
Head of the Science Planning and Community Coordination Office European Space Agency (See attached file: 28226 -Call for a S mission

We would like to attract your attention to the UKSP Business Lunch, scheduled on Thursday 29 March, (13.00-14.00) at 2.218, as a part of NAM. There will be a brief report of the UKSP Council to the community, followed by some discussion.

We would like to ask you to suggest possible topics for the discussion.
Please send it to Valery Nakariakov and Ineke De Moortel by email
(V.Nakariakov(AT)warwick.ac.uk and ineke(AT)mcs.st-and.ac.uk).

We are looking forward to see you at NAM.

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/~tohban/wiki/index.php/An_Fe_Cascade

The ideal candidate will have (or expect to gain) a good first or upper second class honours degree in mathematics or physics. Some knowledge of fluid dynamics and/or MHD and experience in numerics will be an advantage. The position is available to start at a mutually agreed date from September 2012.

The MHD group at Dundee presently consists of three permanent members of staff (Drs G. Hornig, D. Pontin and A. Wilmot-Smith), one STFC funded PDRA and one STFC funded PhD student. The group has access to a large parallel computing facility. Please see also our web page: http://www.maths.dundee.ac.uk/mhd/

For further information and details of how to apply please contact Dr Gunnar Hornig at gunnar@maths.dundee.ac.uk . To ensure that you are considered in the first selection round, please contact us by 13th of April 2012.

The University of Dundee is committed to equal opportunities and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.

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- Assistant Professor in Theoretical Physics (Permanent)
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Further details at: http://www.maths.tcd.ie/index.php?file=openpos

Closing date: March 30th 2012.

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March 2012 Nugget:
http://msslxr.mssl.ucl.ac.uk:8080/SolarB/nuggets/nugget_2012mar.jsp

Nugget Archive:
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EIS nuggets are published monthly. If you would like to contribute a nugget, please contact Deb Baker or Lucie Green.

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by Bernhard Kliem (MSSL/UCL & Potsdam) Terry G. Forbes (University of New Hampshire), Spiros Patsourakos (University of Ioannina), Angelos Vourlidas (NRL)

EUV cavities in fast CMEs are due to an inverse pinch effect.

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=4161

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UKSP Nuggets are published on a monthly basis highlighting solar physics research in the UK.

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Iain Hannah and Lyndsay Fletcher

http://www.uksolphys.org/?p=4161

The successful applicants will participate in the institute’s theoretical and data analysis research in the following directions:
1.) Magnetic reconnection and its observational signature in the solar atmosphere,
2.) The acceleration of supra-thermal particles,
3.) The role of magnetic fields in solar and astrophysical problems,
4.) Turbulence in solar plasmas.
A strong background in at least one of the following areas would be an advantage: solar physics, image processing, spectroscopic analysis or numerical MHD, ideally coupled with strong written and oral communication skills.

The successful candidates will initially be employed for two years, with a possibility of a one-year extension. They will be offered a tax-free stipendium according to the regulations of the Max-Planck Society.

The application should include a curriculum vitae and a full list of publications. Attached should be a short (one-to-two-page) letter containing a description of your strengths and qualifications for the above described topics, as well as a brief research plan. Please, provide also the names of three scientists willing to provide letters of reference. Applications will be considered starting April 1st 2012 until the positions are filled. Please, send the application in electronic form to Johannes Stecker “stecker(AT)mps.mpg.de” noting ” Max Planck Princeton Research Center ” in the subject field. The detailed job offer is available at

http://www.mps.mpg.de/en/aktuelles/jobs/

.

Bernhard Kliem, Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London and Institute of Physics and Astronomy, University of Potsdam;
Terry G. Forbes, EOS Institute, University of New Hampshire;
Spiros Patsourakos, Department of Physics, University of Ioannina;
Angelos Vourlidas, Space Science Division, Naval Research Laboratory

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Introduction

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) observed by white-light coronagraphs in the outer corona and inner solar wind generally have a three-part structure – core, cavity and front. The cavity is interpreted as the cross section of the CME flux rope in the plane of sky. Although a flux-rope cavity is now thought to always be present in CMEs, it is not known whether this is true also for the pre-eruption configuration.

Observations of the CME cavity in the inner and middle corona, where the fast ejections are accelerated, had been severely limited prior to the launch of the STEREO and SDO missions. Their EUV images revealed cases of very rapid cavity expansion early in the event for a number of impulsive and fast CMEs which had no clear signature of a preexisting cavity [1-3]. This EUV cavity then evolved into the white-light cavity at greater heights. However, the pronounced initial expansion is not always correlated with the rise profile of the soft X-ray emission, usually taken as a proxy for reconnection. Therefore, these observations are difficult to reconcile with the standard interpretation that the expansion of the flux rope is driven by reconnection of ambient flux into the rope. In this nugget we present SDO observations of a flux rope and its cavity, and describe a new ideal MHD model for its observed evolution.

Figure 1: 2011 March 8 eruption in AR 11171 at the east limb of the Sun, rotated by 90 degrees. Base-ratio images, relative to 03:30 UT, from SDO/AIA in the 171 Å (0.7 MK) and 131 Å (11 MK) channels are overlaid, shown in green and red, respectively. The faint edge of the cavity forming under a set of pre-existing loops is indicated in the first panel; the swept-up loops lie at the cavity boundary in the other panels.

SDO Observations of the CME Cavity and Flux Rope in the Inner Corona

The wide temperature range of the SDO/AIA channels allows us to image both cavity and flux rope in the inner corona. The flux rope is very hot (T > 7 MK) as a result of flare reconnection, while the cavity and rim are seen at standard coronal temperatures. Although the first such observation showed the cavity rim located just outside the hot plasma [4] (in agreement with the observations of white-light CMEs at greater heights), a different situation is found in other, faster eruptions (as well as in the eruption studied in [4] at later times). Figure 1 displays an overlay of AIA observations of an eruption in the 171 Å and 131 Å channels, sensing 0.7 MK and 11 MK plasma, respectively. These images clearly show a quickly rising loop-shaped hot structure – the flux rope. The cavity forms under a set of preexisting loops, eventually sweeping them up. The cavity is considerably larger than the rope at any point in the sequence, with the ratio of their projected heights decreasing gradually from 1.9 to 1.5 as they traverse the AIA field of view.

Mechanism of Cavity Formation and Expansion

The rapid formation and expansion of a cavity in the ambient volume can be readily understood within the framework of flux-rope CMEs as an inverse pinch effect, which is an ideal MHD effect not relying on reconnection. The pinch effect is the contraction and confinement of a current-carrying plasma from the magnetic field generated by the current, and so the inverse pinch effect operates here as follows. If a current-carrying flux rope becomes unstable and rises, the current through the rope must decrease, since both the number of field line turns in the rope and the flux passing through the area between the rope and the photosphere are preserved in ideal MHD. The magnetic energy released from the current can then power the CME and flare. Both effects are equivalent to decreasing the azimuthal field strength which is directly proportional to the current. The conservation of the azimuthal flux then causes the flux surfaces in the ambient medium to move away from the rope, forming a cavity with swept-up material at its edge.

Figure 2: Simulated flux rope and cavity expansion. Rainbow-colored field lines lie in and slightly inside the surface of the flux rope. Green field lines are equally spaced at the z axis and show mostly the ambient field.

As the current is roughly inversely proportional to the length of the rope, it changes most rapidly in the early stage of the eruption. The inverse pinch effect is therefore strongest in the phase of main CME acceleration, with the temporal rate of change increasing with the velocity of the CME. These properties correspond perfectly to the observations of EUV cavities which expand very rapidly early in fast CMEs and have sizes clearly larger than the flux rope. Subsequently, the different expansion mechanisms acting in the flux rope and the cavity let the flux rope grow slightly faster. The resulting gradual approach to the size of the cavity reconciles the observations of CME cavities in the inner and outer corona. Figure 2 demonstrates the inverse pinch effect in a simulated flux rope eruption and indicates also the subsequent gradual decrease of the size ratio. Further detail will be given in a forthcoming publication.

References

• [1] Aschwanden, M. J. 2009, Ann. Geophysicae, 27, 3275
• [2] Patsourakos, S., Vourlidas, A., & Kliem, B. 2010a, A&A, 522, A100
• [3] Patsourakos, S., Vourlidas, A., & Stenborg, G. 2010b, ApJ, 724, L188
• [4] Cheng, X., Zhang, J., Liu, Y., & Ding, M. D. 2011, ApJ, 732, L25

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A number of vacancies have arisen for outstanding individuals to become members of STFC’s Committees and Panels, as listed below.

Vacancies have arisen, or will be arising, due to the normal rotation of membership on:
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The closing date for these posts is Monday 27th February 2012.

Brief descriptions of the panels and committees can be found below.

For further information about the Committees and how to apply please read the full call for nominations on the STFC website