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Published January 10, 2016 | Erratum + Published
Journal Article Open

Spectral Properties of Large Gradual Solar Energetic Particle Events. I. Fe, O, and Seed Material

Abstract

We have surveyed ~0.1–100 MeV nucleon^(−1) O and Fe fluence spectra during 46 isolated, large gradual SEP events observed at ACE during solar cycles 23 and 24. Most SEP spectra are well represented by the four-parameter Band function with a normalization constant, low-energy spectral slope, high-energy spectral slope, and break energy. The O and Fe spectral slopes are similar and most spectra steepen above the break energy, probably due to common acceleration and transport processes affecting different ion species. SEP spectra above the break energies depend on the origin of the seed population; larger contributions of suprathermal flare material result in higher Fe/O ratios and flatter spectra at higher energies. SEP events with steeper O spectra at low energies and higher break energies are associated with slower coronal mass ejections (CMEs), while those associated with fast (>2000 km s^(−1)) CMEs and ground level enhancements have harder or flatter spectra at low and high energies, and O break energies between ~1 and 10 MeV nucleon^(−1). The latter events are enriched in ^3He and higher-energy Fe, and have Fe spectra that rollover at significantly lower energies compared with O, probably because Fe ions with smaller Q/M ratios can escape from the distant shock more easily than O ions with larger Q/M ratios. We conclude that SEP spectral properties result from many complex and competing effects, namely Q/M-dependent scattering, shock properties, and the origin of the seed populations, all of which must be taken into account to develop a comprehensive picture of CME-driven shock acceleration of large gradual SEP events.

Additional Information

© 2016. The American Astronomical Society. Received 2015 September 16; accepted 2015 November 4; published 2016 January 11. We are grateful to the members of the Space Physics Group at the University of Maryland and the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) for the construction of the ULEIS instrument and to members of the Space Radiation Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology for the construction of the SIS instrument. We acknowledge use of the NOAA SPE list. Work at SwRI is partially supported by NASA grants NNX13AE07G and NNX13AI75G; NASA contracts NNX10AT75G and NNN06AA01C; and NSF grants AGS-1135432 and AGS-1460118. Work at APL was supported by NASA grants NNX13AR20G/115828 and 44A-1091698 and NSF grants AGS-1156138 and AGS-1460118.

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Published - Desai_2016p68.pdf

Erratum - Desai_2016_ApJ_831_209.pdf

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Created:
August 22, 2023
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October 17, 2023