Bonn 2020 – scientific programme

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EP: Fachverband Extraterrestrische Physik

EP 2: Sun and Heliosphere I

EP 2.5: Talk

Tuesday, March 31, 2020, 12:15–12:30, H-HS VIII

Turbulent onset of fast magnetic reconnection in the solar atmosphere — •Lakshmi Pradeep Chitta¹ and Alexandre Lazarian² — ¹Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Göttingen 37077, Germany — ²Astronomy Department, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA

Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental process in the universe that converts magnetic energy into other forms in astrophysical plasmas. For instance, solar ultraviolet bursts are driven by magnetic reconnection. Similarly, reconnection powers solar flares and even energetic gamma-ray bursts. Fast reconnection on scales of Alfvén time is required to explain the explosive nature of these events. In the solar atmosphere, that corresponds to a few minutes. Despite its importance, the nature of astrophysical fast reconnection is an open question and is a subject of intensive debates.

In this talk, we present results based on high cadence spectroscopic observations of reconnection-powered solar microflares that brighten on timescales of minutes, obtained by the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph. Our observations capture the complete evolution of microflares and thus provide unprecedented access to plasma dynamics before and during reconnection. We discuss the nature of plasma turbulence at reconnection sites prior to flaring, and its role in inducing fast reconnection.