In this paper we describe the semi-spectral linear MHD (SLiM) code which we have written to follow the interaction of linear waves through an inhomogeneous three-dimensional solar atmosphere. The background model allows almost arbitrary perturbations of density, temperature, sound speed as well as magnetic and velocity fields. We give details of several of the tests we have used to check the code. The code will be useful in understanding the helioseismic signatures of various solar features, including sunspots.

Context. Until recently, camera networks designed for monitoring fireballs worldwide were not fully automated, implying that in case of a meteorite fall, the recovery campaign was rarely immediate. This was an important limiting factor as the most fragile – hence precious – meteorites must be recovered rapidly to avoid their alteration. Aims. The Fireball Recovery and InterPlanetary Observation Network (FRIPON) scientific project was designed to overcome this limitation. This network comprises a fully automated camera and radio network deployed over a significant fraction of western Europe and a small fraction of Canada. As of today, it consists of 150 cameras and 25 European radio receivers and covers an area of about 1.5 × 106 km2. Methods. The FRIPON network, fully operational since 2018, has been monitoring meteoroid entries since 2016, thereby allowing the characterization of their dynamical and physical properties. In addition, the level of automation of the network makes it possible to trigger a meteorite recovery campaign only a few hours after it reaches the surface of the Earth. Recovery campaigns are only organized for meteorites with final masses estimated of at least 500 g, which is about one event per year in France. No recovery campaign is organized in the case of smaller final masses on the order of 50 to 100 g, which happens about three times a year; instead, the information is delivered to the local media so that it can reach the inhabitants living in the vicinity of the fall. Results. Nearly 4000 meteoroids have been detected so far and characterized by FRIPON. The distribution of their orbits appears to be bimodal, with a cometary population and a main belt population. Sporadic meteors amount to about 55% of all meteors. A first estimate of the absolute meteoroid flux (mag < –5; meteoroid size ≥~1 cm) amounts to 1250/yr/106 km2. This value is compatible with previous estimates. Finally, the first meteorite was recovered in Italy (Cavezzo, January 2020) thanks to the PRISMA network, a component of the FRIPON science project.

International audienc

Motivated by the question of how to distinguish seismically between monolithic and cluster models of sunspots, we have simulated the propagation of an f -mode wave packet through two identical small magnetic flux tubes (R = 200 km), embedded in a stratified atmosphere. We want to study the effect of separation d and incidence angle χ on the scattered wave. We have demonstrated that the horizontal compact pair of tubes (d/R = 2, χ = 0) oscillate as a single tube when the incident wave is propagating, which gives a scattered wave amplitude of about twice that from a single tube. The scattered amplitude decreases with increasing d when d is about λ/2π where λ is the wavelength of the incident wave packet. In this case the individual tubes start to oscillate separately in the manner of near-field scattering. When d is about twice of λ/2π, scattering from individual tubes reaches the far-field regime, giving rise to coherent scattering with an amplitude similar to the case of the compact pair of tubes. For perpendicular incidence (χ = π/2), the tubes oscillate simultaneously with the incident wave packet. Moreover, simulations show that a compact cluster oscillates almost as a single individual small tube and acts more like a scattering object, while a loose cluster shows multiple-scattering in the near-field and the absorption is largest when d within the cluster is about λ/2π. This is the first step to understand the seismic response of a bundle of magnetic flux tubes in the context of sunspot and plage helioseismology.