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The apparent longitude distribution of solar flares

Conway, AJ; Matthews, SA; (2003) The apparent longitude distribution of solar flares. ASTRON ASTROPHYS , 401 (3) 1151 - 1157. 10.1051/0004-6361:20030216. Green open access

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Abstract

The distribution of solar flares in solar disk longitude averaged over many solar rotations must be uniform. However, heliographic longitude distributions constructed from observed flare locations are obviously not uniform. In the wavelength ranges we consider (hard and soft X-rays and Halpha), where the emission is presumed to be nearly isotropic, we find a wavelength-dependent bias such that fewer flares than expected occur near the limb. We can explain this bias in terms of the method of locating the flare (from Halpha) and the flare magnitude and duration. This work has implications that are relevant to measuring directivity in emission processes and also the possibility of identifying limb flares by statistical means in catalogues rather than by the time-consuming inspection of images.

Type: Article
Title: The apparent longitude distribution of solar flares
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361:20030216
Keywords: Sun : magnetic fields, Sun : flares, methods : statistical, Sun : activity, GAMMA-RAYS, DIRECTIVITY, EMISSION
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Space and Climate Physics
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/9748
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