Evidence for hot fast flow above a solar flare arcade

Abstract

Solar flares are one of the main forces behind space weather events. However, the mechanism that drives such energetic phenomena is not fully understood. The standard eruptive flare model predicts that magnetic reconnection occurs high in the corona where hot fast flows are created. Some imaging or spectroscopic observations have indicated the presence of these hot fast flows, but there have been no spectroscopic scanning observations to date to measure the two-dimensional structure quantitatively. We analyzed a flare that occurred on the west solar limb on 2012 January 27 observed by the Hinode EUV Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) and found that the hot (∼30MK) fast (>500 km s-1) component was located above the flare loop. This is consistent with magnetic reconnection taking place above the flare loop. © 2013. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved..