2010/01/08 by Ying Liu, Jackie A. Davies, Janet G. Luhmann +3 · 4 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Corona (planetary geology) #Coronal hole #Coronal mass ejection #Heliosphere #Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics #Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Stereoscopy #Track (disk drive) #Tracking (education) #Triangulation #astro-ph.SR
paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/2041-8205/710/1/l82
14 pages, 5 figures. accepted for publication in ApJ Letters
arxiv created 2010/01/08 · openalex publication_date 2010/01/22 · arxiv updated 2015/05/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We describe a geometric triangulation technique, based on time–elongation maps constructed from imaging observations, to track coronal mass ejections (CMEs) continuously in the heliosphere and predict their impact on the Earth. Taking advantage of stereoscopic imaging observations from the Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory, this technique can determine the propagation direction and radial distance of CMEs from their birth in the corona all the way to 1 AU. The efficacy of the method is demonstrated by its application to the 2008 December 12 CME, which manifests as a magnetic cloud (MC) from in situ measurements at the Earth. The predicted arrival time and radial velocity at the Earth are well confirmed by the in situ observations around the MC. Our method reveals non-radial motions and velocity changes of the CME over large distances in the heliosphere. It also associates the flux-rope structure measured in situ with the dark cavity of the CME in imaging observations. Implementation of the technique, which is expected to be a routine possibility in the future, may indicate a substantial advance in CME studies as well as space weather forecasting.