Coronal jets, magnetic topologies, and the production of interplanetary electron streams

TL;DR

This study links impulsive solar energetic particle events to coronal jets associated with active regions, showing that jets, rather than coronal mass ejections, are primary in accelerating interplanetary electron streams, based on combined observations and magnetic modeling.

Contribution

It demonstrates that coronal jets originating from specific active regions are the main source of impulsive SEP electron streams, highlighting the role of magnetic topology and jet dynamics.

Findings

Jets are closely related to SEP electron streams.

Open magnetic field lines facilitate particle escape.

Jets originate from active regions with favorable magnetic polarity.

Abstract

We investigate the acceleration source of the impulsive solar energetic particle (SEP) events on 2007 January 24. Combining the in situ electron measurements and remote-sensing solar observations, as well as the calculated magnetic fields obtained from a potential-field source-surface model, we demonstrate that the jets associated with the hard X-ray flares and type-III radio bursts, rather than the slow and partial coronal mass ejections, are closely related to the production of interplanetary electron streams. The jets, originated from the well-connected active region (AR 10939) whose magnetic polarity structure favors the eruption, are observed to be forming in a coronal site, extending to a few solar radii, and having a good temporal correlation with the electron solar release. The open-field lines near the jet site are rooted in a negative polarity, along which energetic particles escape from the flaring AR to the near-Earth space, consistent with the in situ electron pitch angle distribution. The analysis enables us to propose a coronal magnetic topology relating the impulsive SEP events to their solar source.