Speaker
Description
First Name: David
Last Name: Williams
Affiliation: European Space Agency
All Authors: David Williams (on behalf of the Solar-C team)
Abstract: Solar-C is the next solar physics mission to be led by JAXA, with important participation from NASA, ESA, France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. Its overarching mission is to understand the fundamental plasma processes that drive solar activity: the underlying physical processes, acting on small scales, that lead to the formation of the outer solar atmosphere and the solar wind; how the solar atmosphere becomes unstable, and drives solar flares and eruptions; and determining the flare-related variability of solar irradiance, which impacts the Earth’s atmosphere. Due for launch in 2030, Solar-C will carry two instruments: the Extreme Ultraviolet High-Throughput Spectroscopic Telescope (EUVST), an imaging slit spectrograph with simultaneous coverage of the chromosphere, transition region and corona (4.4 < logT <6.9) to capture the transport and dissipation of energy in the solar atmosphere; and the Solar Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SoSpIM), a full-Sun instrument measuring the irradiance at the Earth in two spectral bands that affect the ionosphere/thermosphere (EUV: 12-21.5 nm) and the stratosphere (Lyman-α: 111–128 nm). Solar-C completes the trio of faciliities that make up the Next Generation Solar Physics Mission concept, joining Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST) already operational on Hawaii and the Multi-slit Solar Explorer (MUSE) to be launched in 2027.