Understanding Solar Eruptions, Solar Wind Formation, and how the Sun Connects to the Heliosphere through a Polar Perspective
Abstract
A major limitation to our understanding of how the Sun connects to the heliosphere is due to our ecliptic bias: all remote observations of the Sun and corona have been made from the ecliptic. The ecliptic viewpoint by itself can never capture the global corona and its connection to the heliosphere. The ecliptic view has large uncertainties in measurements of the polar magnetic fields and has limited ability to measure longitudinal coronal structure. A polar perspective can provide new ways to test theories of a host of solar and heliospheric physics problems, from the quiescent processes involved in solar wind formation, up through transient solar eruptions and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Because the structure and strength of the polar photospheric magnetic fields shape the corona and provide key input to coronal and heliospheric models, measuring and tracking the evolution of the polar magnetic fields provides the bones of the corona-heliosphere connection as well as information on the storage and release of explosive energy. Images of the corona in EUV and white light provide the coronal counterpart to the photospheric magnetic field measurements for connecting the Sun to the heliosphere. They capture global coronal connectivity and interactions, longitudinal expansion and structure, and the effects of co-rotation. Since CMEs tend to deflect toward the equator, a polar view captures essentially all Earth-and planet-directed CMEs from a view perpendicular to their direction of propagation. Overall, the discovery space for a polar imager is enormous. We describe progress on these topics that can be expected with Solar Orbiter, which will get to 30 degrees orbital inclination in the extended mission. We also discuss the unique science that can be done by continuous imaging of the polar magnetic fields and corona from above 70 degrees for at least a solar rotation, such as proposed by the Solaris mission.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2021
- Bibcode:
- 2021AGUFMSH34D..01V