We present a statistical analysis of solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) based on 23 years of quasi-continuous observations with the LASCO coronagraph, thus covering two complete Solar Cycles (23 ...and 24). We make use of five catalogs, one manual (CDAW) and four automated (ARTEMIS, CACTus, SEEDS, and CORIMP), to characterize the temporal evolutions and distributions of their properties: occurrence and mass rates, waiting times, periodicities, angular width, latitude, speed, acceleration and kinetic energy. Our analysis points to inevitable discrepancies between catalogs due to the complex nature of CMEs and to the different techniques implemented to detect them, but also to large areas of convergence that are critically important to ascertain the reliability of the results. The temporal variations of these properties are compared to four indices/proxies of solar activity: the radio flux at 10.7 cm (F10.7), the international sunspot number (SSN), the sunspot area (SSA), and the total magnetic field (TMF), either globally or separately in the northern and southern hemispheres in the case of the last three. We investigate the association of CMEs with flares, erupting prominences, active regions and streamers. We find that the CME occurrence and mass rates globally track the indices/proxies of solar activity with no time lag, prominently the radio flux F10.7, but the linear relationships were different during the two solar cycles, implying that the CME rates were relatively larger during SC 24 than during SC 23. However, there exists a pronounced divergence of the CME rates in the northern hemisphere during SC 24 as these rates were substantially larger than predicted by the temporal variation of the sunspot number. The distribution of kinetic energy follows a log-normal law and that of angular width follows an exponential law implying that they are random and independent. The distribution of waiting time (WTD) has a long power-law tail extending from 3 to 100 hr with a power-law index which varies with the solar cycle, thus reflecting the temporal variability of the process of CME formation. There is very limited evidence for periodicities in the occurrence and mass rates of CMEs, a striking feature being the dichotomy between the two hemispheres. Rather weak correlations are present among the various CME parameters and particularly none between speed and acceleration. The association of CMEs with flares and erupting prominences involves only a few percents of the overall population of CMEs but the associated CMEs have distinctly larger mass, speed, kinetic energy and angular width. A more pronounced association is found with active regions but the overwhelming one is with streamers further confirmed by the similarity between the heliolatitudinal distribution of CMEs and that of the electron density reconstructed from time-dependent tomographic inversion. We find no evidence of bimodality in the distributions of physical parameters that would support the existence of two classes, particularly that based on speed and acceleration, the distributions thus favoring a continuum of properties. There exists an excess of narrows CMEs which however does not define a special class. These narrow CMEs are likely associated with the ubiquitous mini-filaments eruptions and with mini flux ropes originating from small magnetic bipoles, the disruption mechanisms being similar to those launching larger CMEs. This supports the concept that CMEs at large arise from closed-field coronal regions at both large and small scales.
Remote observations of the solar photospheric light scattered by electrons (the K-corona) and dust (the F-corona or zodiacal light) have been made from the ground during eclipses
and from space at ...distances as small as 0.3 astronomical units
to the Sun. Previous observations
of dust scattering have not confirmed the existence of the theoretically predicted dust-free zone near the Sun
. The transient nature of the corona has been well characterized for large events, but questions still remain (for example, about the initiation of the corona
and the production of solar energetic particles
) and for small events even its structure is uncertain
. Here we report imaging of the solar corona
during the first two perihelion passes (0.16-0.25 astronomical units) of the Parker Solar Probe spacecraft
, each lasting ten days. The view from these distances is qualitatively similar to the historical views from ground and space, but there are some notable differences. At short elongations, we observe a decrease in the intensity of the F-coronal intensity, which is suggestive of the long-sought dust free zone
. We also resolve the fine-scale plasma structure of very small eruptions, which are frequently ejected from the Sun. These take two forms: the frequently observed magnetic flux ropes
and the predicted, but not yet observed, magnetic islands
arising from the tearing-mode instability in the current sheet. Our observations of the coronal streamer evolution confirm the large-scale topology of the solar corona, but also reveal that, as recently predicted
, streamers are composed of yet smaller substreamers channelling continual density fluctuations at all visible scales.
We present a review of the observations of the solar F-corona from space with a special emphasis of the 25 years of continuous monitoring achieved by the LASCO-C2 and C3 coronagraphs. Our work ...includes images obtained by the navigation cameras of the
Clementine
spacecraft, the SECCHI/HI-1A heliospheric imager onboard STEREO-A, and the Wide Field Imager for Solar Probe onboard the
Parker Solar Probe
. The connection to the zodiacal light is considered based on ground- and space-based observations, prominently from the past
Helios
, IRAS, COBE, and IRAKI missions. The characteristic radiance profiles along the two symmetry axis of the “elliptically” shaped F-corona (aka equatorial and polar directions) follow power laws in the
5
∘
–
50
∘
range of elongation, with constant power exponents of −2.33 and −2.55. Both profiles connect extremely well to the corresponding standard profiles of the zodiacal light. The LASCO equatorial profile exhibits a shoulder implying a
≈
17
%
decrease of the radiance within
≈
10
R
⊙
that may be explained by the disappearance of organic materials within 0.3 AU. LASCO detected for the first time a secular variation of the F-corona, an increase at a rate of 0.46% per year of the integrated radiance in the LASCO-C3 field of view. This is likely the first observational evidence of the role of collisions in the inner zodiacal cloud. The temporal evolution of the integrated radiance in the LASCO-C2 field of view is more complex suggesting possible additional processes. Whereas it is well established that the F-corona is slightly redder than the Sun, the spectral variation of its color index is not yet well established. A composite of C2 and C3 images produced the LASCO reference map of the radiance of the F-corona from 2 to
30
R
⊙
and, by combining with ground-based measurements, the LASCO extended map from 1 to
6
R
⊙
. An upper limit of
0.03
R
⊙
is obtained for the offset between the center of the Sun and that of the F-corona with a most likely value of zero. The flattening index of the F-corona starts from zero at an elongation of
0.5
∘
±
0.01
∘
(
1.9
R
⊙
) and increases linearly with the logarithm of the elongation to connect to that of the zodiacal light with however a small hump related to the shoulder in the equatorial profile. The shape of the isophotes is best described by super-ellipses with an exponent linked to the flattening index. An ellipsoid model of the spatial density of interplanetary dust is solely capable of reproducing this shape, thus rejecting other classical models such as fan, and cosine. The plane of symmetry of the inner zodiacal cloud is strongly warped, its inclination increasing towards the planes of the inner planets and ultimately the solar equator. In contrast, its longitude of ascending node is found to be constant and equal to
87.6
∘
. LASCO did not detect any small scale structures such as putative rings occasionally reported during solar eclipses. The outer border of the depletion zone where interplanetary dust particles start to be affected by sublimation appears well constrained at
≈
19
R
⊙
. This zone extends down to
≈
5
R
⊙
, thus defining the boundary of the dust-free zone where the most refractory materials – likely moderately absorbing silicates – disappear.
IFCT study administering 7.5 mg/kg Bevacizumab plus chemotherapy after chemotherapy induction did not improve outcomes in extensive SCLC patients.
This randomized phase II–III trial sought to ...evaluate the efficacy and safety of adding bevacizumab (Bev) following induction chemotherapy (CT) in extensive small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).
Enrolled SCLC patients received two induction cycles of CT. Responders were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive four additional cycles of CT alone or CT plus Bev (7.5 mg/kg), followed by single-agent Bev until progression or unacceptable toxicity. The primary end point was the percentage of patients for whom disease remained controlled (still in response) at the fourth cycle.
In total, 147 patients were enrolled. Partial response was observed in 103 patients, 74 of whom were eligible for Bev and randomly assigned to the CT alone group (n = 37) or the CT plus Bev group (n = 37). Response assessment at the end of the fourth cycle showed that disease control did not differ between the two groups (89.2% versus 91.9% of patients remaining responders in CT alone versus CT plus Bev, respectively; Fisher's exact test: P = 1.00). Progression-free survival (PFS) since randomization did not significantly differ, with a median PFS of 5.5 months 95% confidence interval (CI) 4.9% to 6.0% versus 5.3 months (95% CI 4.8% to 5.8%) in the CT alone and CT plus Bev groups, respectively hazard ratio (HR) for CT alone: 1.1; 95% CI 0.7% to 1.7%; unadjusted P = 0.82. Grade ≥2 hypertension and grade ≥3 thrombotic events were observed in 40% and 11% of patients, respectively, in the CT plus Bev group. Serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and soluble VEGF receptor titrations failed to identify predictive biomarkers.
Administering 7.5 mg/kg Bev after induction did not improve outcome in extensive SCLC patients.
Context.
Asteroid (16) Psyche is the largest M-type asteroid in the main belt and the target of the NASA Psyche mission. It is also the only asteroid of this size (
D
> 200 km) known to be metal ...rich. Although various hypotheses have been proposed to explain the rather unique physical properties of this asteroid, a perfect understanding of its formation and bulk composition is still missing.
Aims.
We aim to refine the shape and bulk density of (16) Psyche and to perform a thorough analysis of its shape to better constrain possible formation scenarios and the structure of its interior.
Methods.
We obtained disk-resolved VLT/SPHERE/ZIMPOL images acquired within our ESO large program (ID 199.C-0074), which complement similar data obtained in 2018. Both data sets offer a complete coverage of Psyche’s surface. These images were used to reconstruct the three-dimensional (3D) shape of Psyche with two independent shape modeling algorithms (
MPCD
and
ADAM
). A shape analysis was subsequently performed, including a comparison with equilibrium figures and the identification of mass deficit regions.
Results.
Our 3D shape along with existing mass estimates imply a density of 4.20 ± 0.60 g cm
−3
, which is so far the highest for a solar system object following the four telluric planets. Furthermore, the shape of Psyche presents small deviations from an ellipsoid, that is, prominently three large depressions along its equator. The flatness and density of Psyche are compatible with a formation at hydrostatic equilibrium as a Jacobi ellipsoid with a shorter rotation period of ∼3h. Later impacts may have slowed down Psyche’s rotation, which is currently ∼4.2 h, while also creating the imaged depressions.
Conclusions.
Our results open the possibility that Psyche acquired its primordial shape either after a giant impact while its interior was already frozen or while its interior was still molten owing to the decay of the short-lived radionuclide
26
Al.
•We derived a global 3D shape model and the rotational parameters of comet 67P/C-G from high-resolution visible images collected aboard the Rosetta spacecraft.•Using this model, we could calculate ...accurate nucleus parameters including a volume of 18.8 ± 0.3 km3 and a density of 532 ± 7 kg m−3.•We could also retrieve the shape and the geometry of the two lobes using computer graphics tools.•A slight excitation of the spin state was detected, with a precession period of 11.5 ± 0.5 day.•The coordinates of the spin axis indicates a slight inhomogeneity of the density distribution.
The Rosetta spacecraft reached Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (hereafter 67P/C-G) in August 2014 at an heliocentric distance of 3.6 a.u. and was then put in orbit around its nucleus to perform detailed observations. Among the collected data are the images acquired by the OSIRIS instrument up to the perihelion passage of the comet in August 2015, which allowed us to map the entire nucleus surface at high-resolution in the visible. Stereophotoclinometry methods have been used to reconstruct a global high-resolution shape model and to monitor its rotational parameters using data collected up to perihelion.
The nucleus has a conspicuous bilobate shape with overall dimensions along its principal axes of (4.34 ± 0.02) × (2.60 ± 0.02) × (2.12 ± 0.06) km. The best-fit ellipsoid dimensions of the individual lobes along their principal axes of inertia are found to be 4.10 × 3.52 × 1.63 km and 2.50 × 2.14 × 1.64 km. Their volume amounts to 66% and 27% of the total volume of the nucleus. The two lobes are connected by a “neck” whose volume has been estimated to represent ∼7% of the total volume of the comet. Combining the derived volume of 18.8 ± 0.3 km3 with the mass of 9.982 ± 0.003 × 1012 kg determined by the Rosetta/RSI experiment, we obtained a bulk density of the nucleus of 532±7kgm−3. Together with the companion value of 535±35kgm−3 deduced from the stereophotogrammetry shape model of the nucleus (Preusker et al. 2015 Astron. Astrophys. 583, A33), these constitute the first reliable and most accurate determination of the density of a cometary nucleus to date. The calculated porosity is quite large, ranging approximately from 70% to 75% depending upon the assumed density of the dust grains and the dust-to-ice mass ratio. The nature of the porosity, either micro or macro or both, remains unconstrained. The coordinates of the center of gravity are not compatible with a uniform nucleus density. The direction of the offset between the center of gravity and the center of figure suggests that the big lobe has a slightly higher bulk density compared to the small one. the center of mass position cannot be explained by different, but homogenous densities in the two lobes.
The initial rotational period of 12.4041 ± 0.0001 h of the nucleus persisted until October 2014. It then slightly increased to a maximum of 12.4304 h reached on 19 May 2015 and finally dropped to 12.305 h just before perihelion on August 10, 2015. A periodogram analysis of the (RA, Dec) direction of the Z-axis of the comet obtained in parallel with the shape reconstruction exhibits a highly significant minima at 11.5 ± 0.5 day clearly indicating an excited rotational state with an amplitude of 0.15 ± 0.03°.
Context.
Dynamical models of Solar System evolution have suggested that the so-called P- and D-type volatile-rich asteroids formed in the outer Solar System beyond Neptune’s orbit and may be ...genetically related to the Jupiter Trojans, comets, and small Kuiper belt objects (KBOs). Indeed, the spectral properties of P- and D-type asteroids resemble that of anhydrous cometary dust.
Aims.
We aim to gain insights into the above classes of bodies by characterizing the internal structure of a large P- and D-type asteroid.
Methods.
We report high-angular-resolution imaging observations of the P-type asteroid (87) Sylvia with the Very Large Telescope Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet REsearch (SPHERE) instrument. These images were used to reconstruct the 3D shape of Sylvia. Our images together with those obtained in the past with large ground-based telescopes were used to study the dynamics of its two satellites. We also modeled Sylvia’s thermal evolution.
Results.
The shape of Sylvia appears flattened and elongated (a/b ~1.45; a/c ~1.84). We derive a volume-equivalent diameter of 271 ± 5 km and a low density of 1378 ± 45 kg m
−3
. The two satellites orbit Sylvia on circular, equatorial orbits. The oblateness of Sylvia should imply a detectable nodal precession which contrasts with the fully-Keplerian dynamics of its two satellites. This reveals an inhomogeneous internal structure, suggesting that Sylvia is differentiated.
Conclusions.
Sylvia’s low density and differentiated interior can be explained by partial melting and mass redistribution through water percolation. The outer shell should be composed of material similar to interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) and the core should be similar to aqueously altered IDPs or carbonaceous chondrite meteorites such as the Tagish Lake meteorite. Numerical simulations of the thermal evolution of Sylvia show that for a body of such a size, partial melting was unavoidable due to the decay of long-lived radionuclides. In addition, we show that bodies as small as 130–150 km in diameter should have followed a similar thermal evolution, while smaller objects, such as comets and the KBO Arrokoth, must have remained pristine, which is in agreement with in situ observations of these bodies. NASA Lucy mission target (617) Patroclus (diameter ≈140 km) may, however, be differentiated.
ABSTRACT The Rosetta probe, orbiting Jupiter-family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, has been detecting individual dust particles of mass larger than 10−10 kg by means of the GIADA dust collector and ...the OSIRIS Wide Angle Camera and Narrow Angle Camera since 2014 August and will continue until 2016 September. Detections of single dust particles allow us to estimate the anisotropic dust flux from 67P, infer the dust loss rate and size distribution at the surface of the sunlit nucleus, and see whether the dust size distribution of 67P evolves in time. The velocity of the Rosetta orbiter, relative to 67P, is much lower than the dust velocity measured by GIADA, thus dust counts when GIADA is nadir-pointing will directly provide the dust flux. In OSIRIS observations, the dust flux is derived from the measurement of the dust space density close to the spacecraft. Under the assumption of radial expansion of the dust, observations in the nadir direction provide the distance of the particles by measuring their trail length, with a parallax baseline determined by the motion of the spacecraft. The dust size distribution at sizes >1 mm observed by OSIRIS is consistent with a differential power index of −4, which was derived from models of 67P's trail. At sizes <1 mm, the size distribution observed by GIADA shows a strong time evolution, with a differential power index drifting from −2 beyond 2 au to −3.7 at perihelion, in agreement with the evolution derived from coma and tail models based on ground-based data. The refractory-to-water mass ratio of the nucleus is close to six during the entire inbound orbit and at perihelion.
The Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph LASCO‐C2 aboard SOHO has now completed 17 years (1996–2012) of quasi‐continuous white‐light imaging of the corona from 2.2 to 6.5 solar radii, thus ...allowing an unprecedented view of its evolution over a solar cycle and a half including the minima of solar cycles 22/23 and 23/24. The corrected and calibrated polarization sequences produce images of the radiance (B), the polarized radiance (pB), and the electron density Ne of the K corona, and, in turn, of their synoptic maps. Their temporal variations are quantified by integration first globally, then in the north and south hemispheres, and finally, in sectors of 30° latitudinal extent centered along the equatorial and polar directions. The global radiance of the K corona follows well the solar activity as described by the sunspot number and the radio flux and was 24% fainter during the minimum of solar cycle 23/24 than during that of cycle 22/23. However, the two hemispheres experienced different reductions, 17% for the north one and 29% for the south one. The equatorial sector suffered a drastic reduction of 44%, in remarkable agreement with the in situ measurements of Wind and ACE at 1 AU, whereas the north and south polar sectors did not experience much variation. Cycle 23 is estimated to have lasted 12 years and 3 months. Maximum conditions have been reached in the northern region, whereas the southern region is still lagging. Finally, the rate of coronal mass ejections follows well the solar activity.
Key Points
The global radiance of the K corona follows the activity pattern of the Sun
It is 24% fainter at the minimum of CY 23/24 compared to CY 22/23.
However the two hemispheres experienced different reductions
Aims.
Asteroid (31) Euphrosyne is one of the biggest objects in the asteroid main belt and it is also the largest member of its namesake family. The Euphrosyne family occupies a highly inclined ...region in the outer main belt and contains a remarkably large number of members, which is interpreted as an outcome of a disruptive cratering event.
Methods.
The goals of this adaptive-optics imaging study are threefold: to characterize the shape of Euphrosyne, to constrain its density, and to search for the large craters that may be associated with the family formation event.
Results.
We obtained disk-resolved images of Euphrosyne using SPHERE/ZIMPOL at the ESO 8.2 m VLT as part of our large program (ID: 199.C-0074, PI: Vernazza). We reconstructed its 3D shape via the
ADAM
shape modeling algorithm based on the SPHERE images and the available light curves of this asteroid. We analyzed the dynamics of the satellite with the
Genoid
meta-heuristic algorithm. Finally, we studied the shape of Euphrosyne using hydrostatic equilibrium models.
Conclusions.
Our SPHERE observations show that Euphrosyne has a nearly spherical shape with the sphericity index of 0.9888 and its surface lacks large impact craters. Euphrosyne’s diameter is 268 ± 6 km, making it one of the top ten largest main belt asteroids. We detected a satellite of Euphrosyne – S/2019 (31) 1 – that is about 4 km across, on a circular orbit. The mass determined from the orbit of the satellite together with the volume computed from the shape model imply a density of 1665 ± 242 kg m
−3
, suggesting that Euphrosyne probably contains a large fraction of water ice in its interior. We find that the spherical shape of Euphrosyne is a result of the reaccumulation process following the impact, as in the case of (10) Hygiea. However, our shape analysis reveals that, contrary to Hygiea, the axis ratios of Euphrosyne significantly differ from those suggested by fluid hydrostatic equilibrium following reaccumulation.
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