RAPID: Acquiring Extensive High Resolution Solar Data for Enhancing Research on the Build-up to Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs)

主要研究人员（PI）打算利用一个独特的机会，完全进入加那利群岛拉帕尔马的荷兰开放望远镜（DOT），该望远镜专门从事高分辨率太阳成像。为了这个项目，这个科学小组将在2010年4月至10月的整个观测季节在拉帕尔马进行观测。这一努力是非常及时的，因为在世纪以来最深的太阳活动极小期之后的第24个太阳活动周期中，太阳活动的上升被推迟了。2010年为科学家提供了这十年中唯一的机会来研究这样一个深度最小活动后新的太阳周期的兴起。DOT是一个上级设施，用于高分辨率的地面太阳成像，利用先进的现场光学散斑处理。交通部利用了拉帕尔马极好的日间视景条件，最大限度地减少了湍流和云层遮蔽。DOT还能够使用设置在9个波长的滤光片对太阳进行层析观测，每个光波长在太阳大气层的不同高度进行采样。 这项国际研究工作将直接有助于改进对日冕物质抛射和太阳耀斑的空间气象预报。主要研究者来自一家女性拥有的小型公司，这项工作将直接涉及四名女科学家，以及一名作为外部合作者的女科学家。因此，这一项目将有助于促进多样性，并增加代表性不足的群体对自然科学的参与。

The Principal Investigators (PIs) intend to take advantage of a unique opportunity for complete access to the Dutch Open Telescope (DOT) on La Palma in the Canary Islands, which specializes in high-resolution solar imaging. For this project, this science team is being offered the entire 2010 observing season which runs from April to October at La Palma. This effort is extremely timely, given the delayed rise of activity in solar cycle 24 that has followed the deepest solar minimum in over a century. The year 2010 provides the only opportunity in this decade for scientists to study the rise of a new solar cycle after such a deep minimum of activity.The DOT is a superior facility for high-resolution ground-based solar imaging, taking advantage of advanced on-site optical speckle processing. The DOT exploits excellent daytime seeing conditions on La Palma which minimize turbulence and cloud obscuration. The DOT is also capable of tomographic observations of the Sun using filters set at nine wavelengths, with each optical wavelength sampling a different height in the solar atmosphere. This international research effort will directly contribute to improved space weather forecasts of coronal mass ejections and solar flares. The lead PI is from a small woman-owned company and this effort will directly involve four female scientists, as well as one additional female scientist as an external collaborator. This project therefore will contribute to diversity and increased participation of under-represented groups in the physical sciences.