Leonardo Primavera

Proper Orthogonal Decomposition of Solar Photospheric Motions

The spatiotemporal dynamics of the solar photosphere is studied by performing a proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) of line of sight velocity fields computed from high resolution data coming from the MDI/SOHO instrument. Using this technique, we are able to identify and characterize the different dynamical regimes acting in the system. Low-frequency oscillations, with frequencies in the range 20-130 microHz, dominate the most energetic POD modes (excluding solar rotation), and are characterized by spatial patterns with typical scales of about 3 Mm. Patterns with larger typical scales of approximately 10 Mm, are associated to p-modes oscillations at frequencies of about 3000 microHz.

SIGN SINGULARITY AND FLARES IN SOLAR ACTIVE REGION NOAA 11158

Solar Active Region NOAA 11158 has hosted a number of strong flares, including one X2.2 event. The complexity of current density and current helicity are studied through cancellation analysis of their sign-singular measure, which features power-law scaling. Spectral analysis is also performed, revealing the presence of two separate scaling ranges with different spectral index. The time evolution of parameters is discussed. Sudden changes of the cancellation exponents at the time of large flares?and the presence of correlation with Extreme-Ultra-Violet and X-ray flux?suggest that eruption of large flares can be linked to the small-scale properties of the current structures.

Analysis of cancellation exponents in two-dimensional Vlasov turbulence

Statistical properties of plasma turbulence are investigated by means of two-dimensional Vlasov simulations. In particular, a classical technique called signed measure is used to characterize the scaling behavior and the topology of sign-oscillating structures in simulations of the hybrid Vlasov-Maxwell model. Exploring different turbulence regimes, varying both the plasma β and the level of fluctuations, it is observed that Vlasov turbulence manifests two ranges with different exponents, the transition being observed near the ion skin depth. These results, which may have applications to both laboratory and astrophysical systems, further confirm the singular nature of small scale fluctuations in a plasma, mainly classified as intermittent, narrow, and intense current sheets.

A model for two-dimensional bursty turbulence in magnetized plasmas

The nonlinear dynamics of two-dimensional electrostatic interchange modes in a magnetized plasma is investigated through a simple model that replaces the instability mechanism due to magnetic field curvature by an external source of vorticity and mass. Simulations in a cylindrical domain, with a spatially localized and randomized source at the center of the domain, reveal the eruption of mushroom-shaped bursts that propagate radially and are absorbed by the boundaries. Burst sizes and the interburst waiting times exhibit power-law statistics, which indicates long-range interburst correlations, similar to what has been found in sandpile models for avalanching systems. It is shown from the simulations that the dynamics can be characterized by a Yaglom relation for the third-order mixed moment involving the particle number density as a passive scalar and the E×B drift velocity, and hence that the burst phenomenology can be described within the framework of turbulence theory. Statistical features are qualitat...