STFC Consolidated Grant for the Solar Physics Group at Northumbria University

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The Solar Physics Group at Northumbria University has a long-term research programme to understand the physics of our closest star, the Sun, and other solar-like stars. The Sun displays a number of fascinating and dynamic phenomena such as powerful solar flares and giant, planet-sized concentrations of magnetic fields (sunspots). It also provides a unique window that permits us to examine in detail how stars behave. The Sun is made of a plasma (ionised gas) threaded by a strong magnetic field. Such magnetised plasmas are common throughout the Universe (e.g. active galaxy nuclei, nebula, interstellar medium), hence our research also advances the understanding across multiple research communities. Furthermore, we are also keen to determine how the Sun influences the near-Earth environment. The Sun is the powerhouse of our solar system and its daily variability can have profound consequences for Earth. Space Weather is the name given to the impact of events (e.g. solar flares, coronal mass ejections) from the Sun on our technologically-advanced society. This impact is both beautiful (e.g. Northern lights) and potentially extremely detrimental (e.g. damaging satellites, increasing radiation that is harmful to aircrew and astronauts). Thus, in order to understand and address the risks associated with Space Weather, we need to understand its origins and drivers. Our work aims to address one of STFC's Science Challenges, namely "How do stars and planetary systems develop and how do they support the existence of life?", as well as key questions in the STFC Roadmap for Solar System Research, e.g. "What are the structures, dynamics and energetics of the Sun?" and "What are the fundamental processes at work in the Solar System?". This proposal focuses on different aspects of these current challenges and questions, with a natural synergy across the projects that contributes towards our long-term goal of a complete and detailed understanding of the Sun. Here, we are interested in discovering answers to problems such as: How do giant vortices (magnetic solar tornadoes) and magnetic waves lead to the heating of the outer envelope of the Sun's atmosphere to millions of degrees, and accelerate streams of charged particles away from the Sun (the solar wind) at speeds of a million miles per hour? How is energy stored and released in magnetic fields, leading to powerful solar flares that give off intense radiation (X-rays, gamma rays) and accelerate particles to relativistic speeds? How can we predict when solar flares occur and so improve our ability to forecast them? To address these fundamental, yet unanswered, questions, our research makes use of advanced mathematical techniques and cutting-edge computer simulations to create models of the Sun based on magnetohydrodynamics. We combine this theoretical effort with the highest-quality data of the Sun available from state-of-the-art solar instruments (e.g. NASA's Solar Dynamic Observatory; DKI Solar Telescope) incorporating information from across the electromagnetic spectrum (e.g. visible, EUV, X-ray) and analysing this with modern methods drawn from statistics and machine learning.