This is a coordinated observing program with Proba-2/SWAP to investigate the nature and extent of large-scale AR loop expansion off-limb using Proba-2/SWAP’s off-pointing capability combined with Hinode.
Scientific Background:
One possible way that AR plasma can become a constituent of the slow Solar Wind under quiet conditions is via a slow expansion of AR loops (Morgan et al., 2013). As it has been shown by MHD simulations (Murray et al., 2010) that loop expansion leading to compression of plasma along external field lines is one of the possible drivers of AR outflows, the two may be causally linked. The off-pointing capabilities of the Proba-2/SWAP instrument fill in a critical gap between the lower corona observed by Hinode and SDO and the extended corona observed by SOHO/LASCO, allowing individual AR loops and streamer structures to be traced from their on-disk source regions out into the heliosphere. In this way, it may be possible to establish whether there is a connection between expanding loops and AR outflows.
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