Description
First name: Shaheda Begum
Last name: Shaik
All authors: Shaheda Begum Shaik, Guillermo Stenborg, Phillip Hess, Angelos Vourlidas, Karl Battams, and Robin Colaninno
Abstract: Comet C/2023 P1 (Nishimura) was observed by the Solar Orbiter Heliospheric Imager (SoloHI) onboard the Solar Orbiter spacecraft from 2023 September 1 to 14. During this period, the ion tail of the comet exhibited continual fluctuations and four tail disconnection events (TDEs), each coinciding with the passage of a coronal mass ejection (CME). In this Letter, we report on the ion tail dynamics of the best observed TDE, which occurred on September 11. The SoloHI white-light images reveal an abrupt bending, subsequent kinks, and severing of a portion of the pre-existing ion tail. We discuss the onset of disconnection after the passage of the CME flank and the rate of tail regrowth. The event highlights the sensitivity of comets as dynamic tracers of interaction with large-scale CME flank structures in the inner heliosphere. This study provides a first direct, quantitative characterization of comet-CME interactions and the subsequent regrowth phase of a cometary tail TDE, achievable through SoloHI's inner-heliospheric coverage and its combination of high photometric sensitivity, short exposure times, and wide field of view that preserve fine-scale tail dynamics.