Exploration of the Transition Region-Corona Interface With the Multi-Order Solar EUV Spectrograph Project

The solar plasma in this temperature range, about 500,000 K, has not been imaged at rapid cadence since Skylab (Feldman, 1987). The unique observational capabilities of MOSES, demonstrated already in He II 30.4 nm, enable simultaneous imaging and measurement of line widths and doppler shifts over a large (20’ x 10’) field of view, with typical active region exposure times of 10 s.

These observations will reveal the 3D dynamics of outflows and reconnection events in active regions, quiet Sun, and coronal holes. The primary objectives of this one-year proposal are (1) instrument calibration, (2) launch of the rocket in summer of 2012, and (3) data analysis, including exploration of new techniques to recover more spectral information from the MOSES data. Prior NASA funding has enabled data analysis and publication of results from the first flight, upgrades to the payload, and increased reliability of our ground support equipment.