Early stages of solar flares - Current status of our understanding and opportunities for future observations

Current models of the energy release and transport mechanisms occurring in solar flares are updated to include the input from data collected with the SMM satellite. The new data cover numerous solar flares observed in X-ray and gamma ray bands over a 6 yr period, combined with data from the Japanese Hinori satellite in 1981-82 and ground-based radio observations. The 300 keV gamma ray data have been instrumental in revealing a 152-158 day period in the frequency of solar flares. Recent analysis has indicated that the periodicity is connected to the rotational spectrum of g-modes in the sun. Other data have shown that hard X-rays are emitted from the footpoints and interactions among coronal magnetic loops, where electron acceleration processes occur that are not well understood. The footpoint emission appear in impulsive events, while the interaction emissions are connected with gradual flares.