Dynamics of the Solar Atmosphere and Heliosphere

Head of Department

Dr. Diana Ionescu

Researchers

• Dr. Liliana Dumitru
• Octavian Blagoi
• Cristian Dănescu
• Dr. Remus Boată
• Dr. Adrian Șonka

Current Research

Coronal mass ejections and their interplanetary counterparts were observationally studied by our team in the frame of an ESA-PECS project (2007-2009) as main drivers of the space weather conditions.

Currently, we pay attention to the solar activity monitor and space weather, the multi-wavelength study of the active regions, filaments evolution and stability, numerical simulations, coronal mass ejections and their interplanetary counterparts research.

We collaborate with International Space Weather Initiative (ISWI) on Solar Radio Bursts Monitoring - part of e-Callisto Network. From 2017 our team works with the ESA Space Weather Service Network

Observatories

Bucharest Solar Observatory

• History
The solar group was founded in 1956 at Bucharest Observatory, by Prof. Calin Popovici, post-mortem member of Romanian Academy after 1990. The research was focused on the solar patrol of the photosphere and chromosphere in the frame of the international cooperation to survey the solar activity. Regularly observations of sunspot groups, prominences and flares activity, were submitted to the world data centers and were also published in our own bulletin Observations Solaires (1956-1997). Statistical studies of solar activity and, later, MHD numerical simulations of coronal mass ejections and coronal streamers were the main topics in our articles. A short history of our work was published at the 50th anniversary in the Fifty Years of Romanian Astrophysics book

• Instrumentation

Wavelength	White light	H alpha 1	H alpha 2
Refractor	REF A: Zeiss 130x1920mm	REF B: Zeiss 110x1650mm	REF C: Zeiss 80x1200mm
Filter	Baader Herschel Prism	Baader Solar Spectrum 0.3A	Baader Solar Spectrum 0.3A
Camera	Atik 4000	ASI 290MM	Atik 11000

Berthelot Solar Observatory

• History
The Berthelot Solar Observatory was built in 2023-2024 as a modern and better alternative of the Bucharest Solar Observatory, placed in a less poluted area, away from big cities. It is remote controlled and use new instrumentation. The story of our work was published in the ROmanian Astronomical Journal Vol. 34, No. 3, 2024 "The New Remote Solar Observatory at General Berthelot" pag.123

• Instrumentation

Wavelength	White light	Ca II K	H alpha
Refractor	REF A: Vixen SD102	REF B: Vixen SD102	REF C: Vixen SD102
Filter	Baader Herschel Prism	Lunt Ca II K filter	DayStar Quantum PE 0.3A
Camera	ASI 533MM	ASI 533MM	Atik APX60