Evolution of the Alfv\'en Mach number associated with a coronal mass ejection shock

TL;DR

This study investigates the evolution of the Alfvén Mach number in a CME-driven shock, comparing three methods of calculation, and relates shock properties to the duration of type II radio bursts observed during a solar eruption.

Contribution

It demonstrates that three different methods for estimating the Alfvén Mach number produce consistent results and links shock evolution to radio emission characteristics in a specific CME event.

Findings

All three methods yield consistent Alfvén Mach number estimates.

Type II radio emission occurs when Mach number is 1.4-2.4 near 1.6 solar radii.

Radio emission ceases despite increasing Mach number, likely due to geometry changes.

Abstract

The Sun regularly produces large-scale eruptive events, such as coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that can drive shock waves through the solar corona. Such shocks can result in electron acceleration and subsequent radio emission in the form of a type II radio burst. However, the early-phase evolution of shock properties and its relationship to type II burst evolution is still subject to investigation. Here we study the evolution of a CME-driven shock by comparing three commonly used methods of calculating the Alfv\'en Mach number ($M_A$), namely: shock geometry, a comparison of CME speed to a model of the coronal Alfv\'en speed, and the type II band-splitting method. We applied the three methods to the 2017 September 2 event, focusing on the shock wave observed in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) by the Solar Ultraviolet Imager (SUVI) on board GOES-16, in white-light by the Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph (LASCO) on board SOHO, and the type II radio burst observed by the Irish Low Frequency Array (I-LOFAR). We show that the three different methods of estimating shock $M_A$ yield consistent results and provide a means of relating shock property evolution to the type II emission duration. The type II radio emission emerged from near the nose of the CME when $M_A$ was in the range 1.4-2.4 at a heliocentric distance of $\sim$1.6 $R_\odot$. The emission ceased when the CME nose reached $\sim$2.4 $R_\odot$, despite an increasing Alfv\'en Mach number (up to 4). We suggest the radio emission cessation is due to the lack of quasi-perpendicular geometry at this altitude, which inhibits efficient electron acceleration and subsequent radio emission.