New project investigates mysteries of Sun’s atmosphere

A new £5 million, five-year project will tackle fundamental questions in solar physics.

The Sun’s activity has a profound impact on satellites, humans in space and technology on Earth.

To understand the physical processes behind the Sun’s activity, it is vital for any simulation to capture the fundamental interplay between the Sun’s radiation and conditions in the vastly different layers of the Sun’s atmosphere (the photosphere, the chromosphere and corona), the complex coupling between them, and how magnetic flux emergence drives eruptions and flares.

No model can currently do this – but one is necessary to understand the cutting-edge observations produced by new facilities, and to provide a step-change in our understanding of how the solar atmosphere works.

The Solar Atmospheric Modelling Suite, or SAMS, project aims to build a next-generation modelling tool for the solar atmosphere – making a code that can be run on anything from laptops to the latest supercomputers.

SAMS is funded as a flagship project by the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) new Large Award scheme.

The project team is led by the University of Exeter and includes the universities of Warwick, Sheffield and Cambridge.

“For a long time the UK was the leading the way in simulating the atmosphere of the Sun, but in recent years we have been eclipsed,” said Professor Andrew Hillier, from the University of Exeter.

“This project will put us right back as one of the leaders in this area.”

For this project, the team will build a modelling suite with detailed physics-based documentation to promote ease of use.

This will be open-source with world-leading physics capabilities designed to maintain the UK’s solar physics community at the forefront of international research whilst pushing forward research in groups around the world.

This will also enable full exploitation of next-generation observations and Exascale computing.

This project will also provide training for early career researchers on the complex underlying physics of the solar atmosphere and how to model this with SAMS..

Dr Erwin Verwichte, Associate Professor (Reader), University of Warwick, said: “Warwick has built a world-leading reputation in numerical modelling of plasma physics.

“Our simulation codes, whether applied to fusion research, the Sun or space weather, are used by researchers across the world.

“The SAMS code will be built on top of that heritage and signifies a key stepping stone in simulating and expanding our knowledge of the Sun’s atmosphere.”

Professor Grahame Blair, STFC Executive Director of Programmes, said: “This substantial investment demonstrates our commitment to maintaining the UK’s leading role in solar physics research.

“Understanding the complex dynamics of our Sun is vital not just for scientific advancement, but for protecting our technology infrastructure, satellite networks, power grids and communications systems on Earth from the impacts of space weather.”