Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
May 1998
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1998arep...42..400z&link_type=abstract
Astronomy Reports, Volume 42, Issue 3, May 1998, pp.400-410
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
3
Scientific paper
A method for estimating the electric currents in coronal magnetic loops is proposed. The method is based on representing a current-carrying arch by an equivalent LRC circuit and analyzing high-Q modulations of the mm-wavelength emission during solar flares. The electric current is assumed to be generated by converging streams of photospheric material and to flow along the coronal part of the loop from one foot to the other, closing in the subphotospheric layers. An equation for the equivalent LRC circuit is obtained, in which the capacitance and resistance depend on the current. Analysis of the mm-wavelength data for sixteen flares recorded at the Metsahovi Radio Observatory reveals modulation periods from 0.7-17 s, which imply current values I = 6 x 10^10 - 1.4 x 10^12 A. Comparison of the current energy stored in the circuit with the thermal energy for two flare events indicates that only about 5% of the energy of the electric circuit is released in the flare. This suggests that the influence of the flare energy release on the coronal magnetic structure is small. The events studied showed a tendency for the energy release to decrease when the current is increased. This can be understood in terms of the plasma parameter beta, which decreases when the current grows, lowering the probability that the instabilities responsible for flares will develop.
Pohjolainen Silja
Stepanov Alexander V.
Urpo Seppo
Zaitsev Valerii V.
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