SHINE: Observationally Constraining the Physical Processes that Generate the Solar Wind

提议者将研究阿尔芬波和磁重联作为太阳风加热和加速的主要来源。该研究小组将分析日野号航天器上的“极紫外成像光谱仪”的新光谱数据，以解决目前关于阿尔芬波是否携带足够的能量来加热和加速太阳风的争论。作者指出，这些结果将提供急需的经验数据，以约束相互竞争的波浪驱动和湍流驱动的太阳风模型，并最终有助于确定真正的太阳风加速机制。通过每年夏天在哥伦比亚大学的“科学教师暑期研究计划”中为个别教师提供实践研究经验，该团队将帮助提高来自纽约市大都市区的初中和高中科学教师的承诺和科学理解。这项活动将产生深远的影响，因为对哥伦比亚大学21年拓展项目的分析表明，参与该项目的教师在未来10年里将继续教授约1,000名学生，并且他们的学生在纽约州评议会科学考试中的通过率也提高了10%。提案人还将访问初中和高中的科学课堂，解释他们的研究，并直接回答学生的问题。考虑到纽约市的学生群体多样化，其中未被充分代表的群体和少数民族的比例很高，这些教育和推广工作构成了一个高影响力的项目。

The proposers will investigate Alfven waves and magnetic reconnection as primary sources for the heating and acceleration of the solar wind. This research team will analyze new spectroscopic data from the "Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer" onboard the Hinode spacecraft in order to resolve the current debate as to whether Alfven waves carry sufficient energy to heat and accelerate the solar wind. The proposers note that these results will provide much needed empirical data to constrain the competing wave-driven and turbulence-driven models of the solar wind, and ultimately help to determine the true solar wind acceleration mechanism.By providing hands-on research experiences for individual teachers each summer at Columbia University's "Summer Research Program for Science Teachers," this team will help improve the commitment and scientific understanding of middle and high school science teachers from the New York City metropolitan area. This activity will have far reaching benefits, since analysis of Columbia's 21-year-old outreach program shows that the teachers who have participated go on to teach about 1,000 students each over the next ten years and also see a 10% increase in the pass rate of their students on the New York State Regents science exam. The proposers will also visit middle and high school science classes to explain their research and answer questions directly from students. Given the fact that New York City has a diverse student population with a high percentage of underrepresented groups and minorities, these education and outreach efforts constitute a high impact program.