REGION LIKELY TO PRODUCE MAJOR FLARES

MAX MILLENNIUM COORDINATED OBSERVING PLAN 003

Scientific Goals | Ground Based Observatories | Space Based Observatories | Target | Scheduling Considerations

TITLE:	REGION LIKELY TO PRODUCE MAJOR FLARES
AUTHOR:	Richard Canfield (canfield@physics.montana.edu) Montana State University William Marquette (wmarquette25@gmail.com) Helio Research
VERSION:	Version 4: 3 September 2013
SUMMARY:	This plan describes context and flare observations from ground-based and space-based instruments and observatories appropriate to solar active regions that are likely to produce solar flares of GOES class M5 or greater. It describes the circumstances under which the Max Millennium Chief Observer will declare a Major Flare Watch. Goal: To obtain multi-wavelength imaging and spectroscopic observations before, during and after large solar flares, which will be the source of high quality X-ray spectra and images from RHESSI. Approach: In a manner appropriate to each instrument, observatory, and spacecraft, to observe, if at all possible, the active region identified in Major Flare Watch message from the Max Millennium Chief Observer distributed to the Max Millennium Message of the Day list.

SCIENTIFIC GOALS

The scientific goal of this program is to understand energy release, particle acceleration, and particle and energy transport in the largest flares, for which images and spectra from RHESSI have high diagnostic potential. Key questions are:

What role do high energy particles play in the energy release process?
Do the high energy particles carry a significant fraction of the released energy?
What mechanisms accelerate both electrons to high energies so rapidly and efficiently?
What is the environment in which this energy release occurs?
What mechanisms transport the flare energy, the energetic particle component in particular, away from the energy release site?
What are the characteristic radiation signatures of flares that have potentially hazardous effects, and how do these flares occur and evolve?

Co-temporal data from ground and space-based observatories are crucial to answering these questions.

GROUND BASED OBSERVATORIES

SPACE BASED OBSERVATORIES

TARGET

The MM Chief Observer will choose regions for this observing program when any of the following criteria are met:

A major flare (GOES classification > M5) has occured (if a region produced one big flare, it will probably produce at least one more).
Large island delta configuration (Area > several-100 micro-hemispheres) - even better if the region is reversed polarity. Bright H-alpha present along the polarity inversion line.
Large delta configuration (Area > several-100 micro-hemispheres) with bright H-alpha plage and better still if reversed polarity. Bright H-alpha present along the polarity inversion line.
Large elongated umbrae (Area > several-100 micro-hemispheres) in pairs of opposite polarity, even if the umbrae are not a delta configuration, if transverse magnetograms reveal sufficiently strong shear and strong-field inversion line length.
Emerging Flux Region coming up within a large existing spot group, if the leader spots of the EFR are adjacent to the existing group's trailing spots or vice-versa.
Rapidly moving large sunspot(s) moving towards and/or into an opposite polarity spot.

SCHEDULING

This is a target-of-opportunity plan. It will be called only when there is a region on the disk or the limb that is likely to produce a major flare, according to the criteria above.