Element abundances in solar energetic particles: two physical processes, two abundance patterns

TL;DR

This paper compares two types of solar energetic particle (SEP) events, revealing distinct physical processes and abundance patterns, with impulsive events showing heavy-element enhancements linked to magnetic reconnection, and gradual events reflecting coronal abundances.

Contribution

It identifies and characterizes the two different abundance patterns and physical mechanisms underlying impulsive and gradual SEP events, including their association with flare activity and coronal conditions.

Findings

Gradual SEP abundances reflect coronal composition with FIP dependence.

Impulsive SEP events show heavy-element enhancements up to 900 times, with a power-law A/Q dependence.

3He/4He ratios vary independently and are linked to narrow, slow CMEs.

Abstract

Abundances of elements comprising solar energetic particles (SEPs) come with two very different patterns. Historically called "impulsive" and "gradual" events, they have been studied for 40 years, 20 years by the Wind spacecraft. Gradual SEP events measure coronal abundances. They are produced when shock waves, driven by coronal mass ejections (CMEs), accelerate the ambient coronal plasma; we discuss the average abundances of 21 elements that differ from corresponding solar photospheric abundances by a well-known dependence on the first ionization potential (FIP) of the element. The smaller impulsive ("3He-rich") SEP events are associated with magnetic reconnection involving open field lines from solar flares or jets that also eject plasma to produce accompanying CMEs. These events produce striking heavy-element abundance enhancements, relative to coronal abundances, by an average factor of 3 at Ne, 9 at Fe, and 900 for elements with 76<Z<82. This is a strong, power-law dependence on A/Q with a ~3.6 power when Q values are determined at coronal temperatures near 3 MK. Small individual SEP events with the steepest enhancements (~6th power of A/Q), from ~2.5 MK plasma, are associated with B- and C-class X-ray flares, and with narrow (<100 deg) CMEs. Enhancements in 3He/4He can be as large as those in heavy elements but are uncorrelated with them. However, events with 3He/4He > 0.1 are even more strongly associated with narrow, slow CMEs, cooler coronal plasma, and smaller X-ray flares. The impulsive SEP events do not come from hot flare plasma; they are accelerated early and/or on adjacent open field lines.