Solar energetic particles injected inside and outside a magnetic cloud: The widespread solar energetic particle event on 2022 January 20

TL;DR

This study analyzes a widespread solar energetic particle event on January 20, 2022, revealing particles injected inside and outside a magnetic cloud, mainly accelerated by a CME-driven shock, with particles spreading over at least 160 degrees in the heliosphere.

Contribution

It provides detailed insights into particle acceleration and propagation involving a magnetic cloud and a CME-driven shock during a major SEP event, highlighting injection inside and outside the cloud.

Findings

Particles spread over at least 160 degrees in the heliosphere.

CME-driven shock is the main accelerator of the SEP event.

Electron propagation path inside the magnetic cloud is about 30% longer than the loop leg.

Abstract

Context. On 2022 January 20, the Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) on board Solar Orbiter measured a solar energetic particle (SEP) event showing unusual first arriving particles from the anti-Sun direction. Near-Earth spacecraft separated 17{\deg} in longitude to the west from Solar Orbiter measured classic antisunward-directed fluxes. STEREO-A and MAVEN, separated 18{\deg} to the east and 143{\deg} to the west from Solar Orbiter respectively, also observed the event, suggesting that particles spread over at least 160{\deg} in the heliosphere. Results. Solar Orbiter was embedded in a MC erupting on 16 January from the same active region as that related to the SEP event on 20 January. The SEP event is related to a M5.5 flare and a fast CME-driven shock of 1433 km/s, which injected particles within and outside the MC. Taken together, the hard SEP spectra, the presence of a Type II radio burst, and the co-temporal Type III radio burst being observed from 80 MHz that appears to emanate from the Type II burst, suggest that the shock is likely the main accelerator of the particles. Conclusions. Our detailed analysis of the SEP event strongly suggests that the energetic particles are mainly accelerated by a CME-driven shock and are injected into and outside of a previous MC present in the heliosphere at the time of the particle onset. The sunward-propagating SEPs measured by Solar Orbiter are produced by the injection of particles along the longer (western) leg of the MC still connected to the Sun at the time of the release of the particles. The determined electron propagation path length inside the MC is around 30% longer than the estimated length of the loop leg of the MC itself (based on the graduated cylindrical shell model), which is consistent with the low number of field line rotations.