New DFG proposal funded at the Solar Magnetism group

The German Science Foundation (DFG) has recently funded a proposal MIRACLE: Magnetic Interactions Releasing Acceleration in Coronal-flaring Loop Environment by Dr. Gregory D Fleishman, the Leader of the Solar Magnetism group at KIS.

The project is funded for a period of three years to support one postdoc FTE and aims at improving our ability to measure and model coronal magnetic field and study associated phenomena. The project will obtain new fundamental knowledge on magnetic reconnection and particle acceleration in solar flares via (i) measuring the coronal magnetic field and its variations; (ii) measuring the nonthermal electron distributions and evaluating a typical efficiency of acceleration; and (iii) understanding these dynamics in the 3D domain. The project will combine the remote sensing of the evolving coronal magnetic field and other parameters in solar flares with data-constrained 3D modeling. The project will yield evolving microwave images of solar flares and active regions, evolving maps of coronal parameters such as magnetic field (see Figure) and plasma densities, new physical phenomena derived from these data and data products, and 3D models of these phenomena. Reviewers were extremely enthusiastic about the project: “This is a compelling, well-written, and impactful project by a world-renowned expert in the field. It has a clear potential for breakthroughs in our understanding of the physics of solar flares, perhaps the most important and influential manifestations of solar activity.”