The Trapping of Low-Energy Particles by Interplanetary Shocks
Abstract
Using ~0.045-10 MeV/nucleon ion data from ACE/ULEIS, we have found that a substantial number of shock- associated solar energetic particle events (20 events) have significant delays in the arrival of the low-energy component beyond what is expected from the travel time of energetic particles from the sun to the earth at 1 AU. Indeed, for some events, after correcting for the velocity dispersion, the low energy component (E < 0.1 MeV/nucleon) is almost completely absent while the high-energy component (E > 1 MeV/nucleon) has very large enhancements. SEP events with the most dramatic initial depletion of low-energy particles are accompanied by large proton fluxes and have large enhancements of the low-energy particles later, in coincidence with the arrival of the interplanetary shock, a day or two after the start of the event. In addition, these events show Fe/O enhancements during the periods in which the low-energy component is depleted and lower Fe/O values once the shock arrives. These new observations appear to be explained by the trapping of particles with low energy-to-charge (E/Q) ratios in the vicinity of the shock by magnetohydrodynamic waves, possibly generated by high energy protons streaming along the magnetic field lines.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2007
- Bibcode:
- 2007AGUFMSH44C..07A
- Keywords:
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- 7514 Energetic particles (2114);
- 7845 Particle acceleration;
- 7851 Shock waves (4455);
- 7867 Wave/particle interactions (2483;
- 6984);
- 7924 Forecasting (2722)