Development of a High-Speed and Full-Disk Polarimeter for Solar Synoptic Observations

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Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) from the Sun are key causes of space weather and solar storms. Such storms can damage satellites, disrupt radio communications and create blackouts of electricity power grids. Studying the origins of these events requires astronomical observations of the Sun, and measurements of polarization across the solar disk. Conventional ground-based astronomical observations cannot reliably measure such polarizations because the atmosphere of the Earth changes from time to time. This project will develop a novel high-speed polarimetry system that effectively freezes the atmospheric perturbations. Resulting polarization measurements will enable studying the solar magnetic fields that govern CMEs. This solar polarimetry system will have a broad scientific impact. Full polarization images at high-speed over the full solar disk on an all-day basis are highly needed by the scientific community. They will benefit society by enabling improved understanding of space weather. California State University, Northridge is an eligible Research in Undergraduate Institution (RUI) as well as a minority serving institution. The instrument developed here will serve as a long-term platform to support the training and research of minority and other students in their early scientific careers.Solar CMEs are often associated with pre-existing prominences. The determination of the magnetic field in the solar chromosphere before, during, and after a CME event will enable understanding the conditions that trigger CMEs, and the magnetic field properties of the ejected material. This polarimetry system will consist of a telescope with a diameter at least 235mm, a tunable Fabry-Perot interferometer, a high-speed polarimeter, and a sCMOS camera. It will provide a large field of view that covers the entire solar disk and it will enable all-day observations. This system will provide the full polarization images in the H-alpha and He D3 lines to infer the chromospheric magnetic field in CME precursors, prominences, or whole active regions.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.