Relativistic electrons from solar flares

Abstract

Observations of interplanetary relativistic electrons from several solar-flare events monitored through 1964 to mid-1967 are presented. These are the first direct spectral measurements and time histories, made outside the magnetosphere, of solar-flare electrons having relativistic velocities. The 3- to 12-MeV electrons detected have kinetic energies about two orders of magnitude higher than those solar electrons previously studied in space, and measurements of both the time histories and energy spectra for a number of events in the present solar cycle were carried out. These measurements of interplanetary electrons are also directly compared with solar X-ray data and with measurements of related interplanetary solar protons.

The time histories of at least four electron events show fits to the typical diffusion picture. A demonstrated similarity between the electron and the medium-energy proton fits for the event of 7 July, in particular, indicates that at these electron energies, but over several orders of magnitude of rigidity, whatever diffusion does take place is very nearly on a velocity, rather than a rigidity or an energy, basis. Diffusion-fit time histories varied as a function of T ₀ also indicate that the electrons in certain flare events originate at times near the X-ray and microwave burst, establishing their likely identity as the same electrons which cause the impulsive radiations. Also, the energy spectra and total numbers of the interplanetary electrons, compared with those of the flare-site electrons calculated from X-ray and microwave measurements, indicate that probably a small fraction of flare electrons escape into interplanetary space.