SDO 2016: UNRAVELING THE SUN'S COMPLEXITY

October 17 - 21, 2016 | Burlington, Vermont

Mini-Workshops

Mini-workshops are an integral part of an SDO Workshop. They are sessions that focus on topics important to SDO science that would require parallel sessions in the main workshop. SDO 2016 will have six mini-workshops Friday morning, October 21, 2016. Workshops will last from 1 to 4 hours. We encourage you to attend one or more mini-workshops at SDO 2016!

TitleChairFor Information ContactDescription
Magnetic Data Calibration: Vector Field Working Group Norton aanorton@stanford.edu Magnetic field data, both vector and line-of-sight, need to be calibrated in such a way to ensure continuity and usefulness across instruments and solar cycles. Aspects such as zero point calibration, inversion model dependence and instrument design influences need to be addressed and understood by the greater community. We invite participation in this mini-workshop which we hope will be the first of a continuing series. SDO/HMI specific concerns, such as the influence of the 24-hour orbital periodicity on the magnetic data, will be discussed. We will focus on the aspects of data calibration that stand in our way of achieving the science results we are actively working towards.
Solar Cycle 24 prediction retrospective Pesnell william.d.pesnell@nasa.gov How did the predictions of the amplitude of Solar Cycle 24 compare with the actual cycle? Are there classes of methods that do better than others? Is the information content in the sunspot number sufficient to allow predictions? This workshop will provide an opportunity to start understanding what it acually means to predict the solar cycle.
EUV Instrument Calibration and Data Inter-Comparisons Jones andrew.jones@lasp.colorado.edu The EUV Instrument Calibration and Data Inter-Comparison Workshop is aimed at understanding the absolute solar spectral EUV irradiance and the comparisons of different techniques of measuring it, including broadband, spectrally resolved, and imaging instruments. The workshop is open to everybody interested in this problem, and is a forum to discuss methods and results of the calibration of EUV instruments, how to correct for instrument degradation, and the inter-comparison of EUV irradiance data from instruments with different temporal and spectral resolution, including, but not limited to, comparisons within SDO (EVE MEGS, EVE ESP, and AIA), and of SDO with other missions (for example: TIMED SEE, MAVEN EUVM, SOHO SEM, PROBA2 LYRA, SOLACES, etc.).
Thermal Diagnostics with SDO/AIA (Part I) Cheung cheung@lmsal.com The first part of this workshop is a tutorial on how to perform differential emission measure (DEM) inversions on EUV imaging observations of the solar corona taken by the SDO/AIA. We will describe the method (see Cheung et al., 2015, ApJ, 807, 2), show some validation tests and walk through some examples on how to use the AIA team's DEM inversion code.
Thermal Diagnostics with SDO/AIA (Part II) Cheung cheung@lmsal.com For the second part of the workshop, we solicit contributions that use SDO/AIA data for thermal mapping of the solar corona. Example of science topics that can be addressed with AIA-derived DEM maps include: (1) the thermal evolution of active regions and emerging flux regions, (2) the thermodynamic structure of magnetic reconnection outflows, and (3) chromospheric evaporation in solar flares. We encourage contributions that complement AIA data with data from other space instruments (e.g. SDO/EVE, IRIS, Hinode/XRT, Hinode/EIS, RHESSI etc.) and ground-based observatories (e.g. radio observations).
SunPy: Bridging from IDL to Python Kirk michael.s.kirk@nasa.gov

IDL has been the programming standard language in solar physics for decades. Within the last 10 years, Python has become a feasible alternative to IDL for solar data retrieval, analysis, and presentation. This tutorial will help people who know IDL, begin to make the transition into using Python. We will cover Anaconda and SunPy package installation, and the basics: array manipulation, plotting, for loops, and where statements.

Notes and examples from the tutorial

SunPy: Solar Data Processing with Python Kirk michael.s.kirk@nasa.gov

I have Anaconda and SunPy installed on my computer, now what? The overcoming the inertia to learn a new programming language is often the major reason we never use it. This tutorial aims to give you a push over that sizeable hurdle so that you can use Python in your next project. We will cover queries and downloading data from the VSO, more complex plotting illustrations, and examples of useful data analysis tools built into Anaconda’s packages.

Notes and examples from the tutorial

Local Helioseismology Working Group Baldner baldner@stanford.edu A discussion of the consistencies and inconsistencies between various methods of helioseismic analysis, in particular determinations of sub-surface flows. An emphasis on sources of errors, both random and systematic.