Radioastronomical Studies of the Solar Corona and Solar Wind

该项目研究太阳日冕和太阳风内部的无线电遥感。这部分空间是极其重要的，因为太阳风起源于这里，条件决定了它的特征。无线电遥感包括通过这部分空间传播的无线电波的“失真”；在这项研究中，无线电波将由射电星系和类星体等自然来源产生。PI可以通过测量接收到的无线电波的幅度和相位来确定太阳风和日冕中的湍流幅度。这将有助于确定湍流在太阳风的结构和动力学中的重要性。具体地说，PI将用VLA射电望远镜测量日冕法拉第旋转，用VLBA测量干涉仪相位的闪烁。法拉第旋转观测测量了气体密度和通过日冕的磁场的平行分量的积分。因此，这些测量确定了日冕的磁流体动力学状态。此外，PI将仔细检查由于日冕中的湍流而导致的法拉第旋转的时间变化。这些测量将：开发一种远程测量太阳风速度的新方法，确定湍流是否被行星际磁场拉长，并确定这种测量对于远程和早期探测其进入地球的行星际扰动的潜力。

This project researches radio remote sensing of the solar corona and inner parts of the solar wind. This portion of space is extremely important since the solar wind originates here, and conditions determine its characteristics. Radio remote sensing consists of "distortions" of radio waves propagating through this part of space; in this study, radio waves will be generated by natural sources such as radio galaxies and quasars. The PI can determine the amplitude of turbulence in the solar wind and corona from measurements of scintillations of amplitude and phase of the received radio waves. This will help determine the importance of turbulence in the structure and dynamics of the solar wind. Specifically, the PI will measure coronal Faraday rotation with the VLA radiotelescope and scintillations of interferometer phase with the VLBA. The Faraday rotation observations measure an integral of gas density and parallel component of the magnetic field through the corona. Therefore, these measurements establish the magnetohydrodynamic state of the solar corona. In addition, the PI will closely examine data for time variation of the Faraday rotation due to turbulence in the corona. These measurements will: develop a new means of remotely measuring the speed of solar wind, determine if the turbulence is elongated by the interplanetary magnetic field, and determine the potential of such measurements for remote and early detection of interplanetary disturbances of their way to Earth.