1,032 research outputs found
Imaging Spectropolarimetry with IBIS: Evolution of Bright Points in the Quiet Sun
We present the results from first spectropolarimetric observations of the
solar photosphere acquired at the Dunn Solar Telescope with the Interferometric
Bidimensional Spectrometer. Full Stokes profiles were measured in the Fe I
630.15 nm and Fe I 630.25 nm lines with high spatial and spectral resolutions
for 53 minutes, with a Stokes V noise of 0.003 the continuum intensity level.
The dataset allows us to study the evolution of several magnetic features
associated with G-band bright points in the quiet Sun. Here we focus on the
analysis of three distinct processes, namely the coalescence, fragmentation and
cancellation of G-band bright points. Our analysis is based on a SIR inversion
of the Stokes I and V profiles of both Fe I lines. The high spatial resolution
of the G-band images combined with the inversion results helps to interpret the
undergoing physical processes. The appearance (dissolution) of high-contrast
G-band bright points is found to be related to the local increase (decrease) of
the magnetic filling factor, without appreciable changes in the field strength.
The cancellation of opposite-polarity bright points can be the signature of
either magnetic reconnection or the emergence/submergence of magnetic loops.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
Inclinations of small quiet-Sun magnetic features based on a new geometric approach
High levels of horizontal magnetic flux have been reported in the quiet-Sun
internetwork, often based on Stokes profile inversions. Here we introduce a new
method for deducing the inclination of magnetic elements and use it to test
magnetic field inclinations from inversions. We determine accurate positions of
a set of small, bright magnetic elements in high spatial resolution images
sampling different photospheric heights obtained by the Sunrise balloon-borne
solar observatory. Together with estimates of the formation heights of the
employed spectral bands, these provide us with the inclinations of the magnetic
features. We also compute the magnetic inclination angle of the same magnetic
features from the inversion of simultaneously recorded Stokes parameters. Our
new, geometric method returns nearly vertical fields (average inclination of
around 14 deg with a relatively narrow distribution having a standard deviation
of 6 deg). In strong contrast to this, the traditionally used inversions give
almost horizontal fields (average inclination of 75+-8 deg) for the same small
magnetic features, whose linearly polarised Stokes profiles are adversely
affected by noise. The almost vertical field of bright magnetic features from
our geometric method is clearly incompatible with the nearly horizontal
magnetic fields obtained from the inversions. This indicates that the amount of
magnetic flux in horizontal fields deduced from inversions is overestimated in
the presence of weak Stokes signals, in particular if Stokes Q and U are close
to or under the noise level. By combining the proposed method with inversions
we are not just improving the inclination, but also the field strength. This
technique allows us to analyse features that are not reliably treated by
inversions, thus greatly extending our capability to study the complete
magnetic field of the quiet Sun.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, 1 table; Accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
Properties of Umbral Dots from Stray Light Corrected Hinode Filtergrams
High resolution blue continuum filtergrams from Hinode are employed to study
the umbral fine structure of a regular unipolar sunspot. The removal of
scattered light from the images increases the rms contrast by a factor of 1.45
on average. Improvement in image contrast renders identification of short
filamentary structures resembling penumbrae that are well separated from the
umbra-penumbra boundary and comprise bright filaments/grains flanking dark
filaments. Such fine structures were recently detected from ground based
telescopes and have now been observed with Hinode. A multi-level tracking
algorithm was used to identify umbral dots in both the uncorrected and
corrected images and to track them in time. The distribution of the values
describing the photometric and geometric properties of umbral dots are more
easily affected by the presence of stray light while it is less severe in the
case of kinematic properties. Statistically, umbral dots exhibit a peak
intensity, effective diameter, lifetime, horizontal speed and a trajectory
length of 0.29 I_QS, 272 km, 8.4 min, 0.45 km/s and 221 km respectively. The 2
hr 20 min time sequence depicts several locations where umbral dots tend to
appear and disappear repeatedly with various time intervals. The correction for
scattered light in the Hinode filtergrams facilitates photometry of umbral fine
structure which can be related to results obtained from larger telescopes and
numerical simulations.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ : 10 pages, 10 figures, 3 table
Study of single-lobed circular polarization profiles in the quiet Sun
The existence of asymmetries in the circular polarization (Stokes V) profiles
emerging from the solar photosphere is known since the 1970s. These profiles
require the presence of a velocity gradient along the line of sight, possibly
associated with gradients of magnetic field strength, inclination and/or
azimuth. We have focused our study on the Stokes V profiles showing extreme
asymmetry in the from of only one lobe. Using Hinode spectropolarimetric
measurements we have performed a statistical study of the properties of these
profiles in the quiet sun. We show their spatial distribution, their main
physical properties, how they are related with several physical observables and
their behavior with respect to their position on the solar disk. The single
lobed Stokes V profiles occupy roughly 2% of the solar surface. For the first
time, we have observed their temporal evolution and have retrieved the physical
conditions of the atmospheres from which they emerged using an inversion code
implementing discontinuities of the atmospheric parameters along the line of
sight. In addition, we use synthetic Stokes profiles from 3D magnetoconvection
simulations to complement the results of the inversion. The main features of
the synthetic single-lobed profiles are in general agreement with the observed
ones, lending support to the magnetic and dynamic topologies inferred from the
inversion. The combination of all these different analysis suggests that most
of the single-lobed Stokes V profiles are signals coming from magnetic flux
emergence and/or submergence processes taking place in small patches in the
photospheric of the quiet sun.Comment: 21 pages, 26 figures, 1 tabl
EMERGENCE of GRANULAR-SIZED MAGNETIC BUBBLES THROUGH the SOLAR ATMOSPHERE. II. NON-LTE CHROMOSPHERIC DIAGNOSTICS and INVERSIONS
© 2015. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Magnetic flux emergence into the outer layers of the Sun is a fundamental mechanism for releasing energy into the chromosphere and the corona. In this paper, we study the emergence of granular-sized flux concentrations and the structuring of the corresponding physical parameters and atmospheric diagnostics in the upper photosphere and in the chromosphere. We make use of a realistic 3D MHD simulation of the outer layers of the Sun to study the formation of the Ca ii 8542 line. We also derive semi-empirical 3D models from non-LTE inversions of our observations. These models contain information on the line-of-sight stratifications of temperature, velocity, and the magnetic field. Our analysis explains the peculiar Ca ii 8542 profiles observed in the flux emerging region. Additionally, we derive detailed temperature and velocity maps describing the ascent of a magnetic bubble from the photosphere to the chromosphere. The inversions suggest that, in active regions, granular-sized bubbles emerge up to the lower chromosphere where the existing large-scale field hinders their ascent. We report hints of heating when the field reaches the chromosphere.he authors thank J. Leenaarts and L. Rouppe van der Voort for illuminating discussions. J. de la Cruz Rodriguez acknowledges financial support from the CHROMOBS project funded by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation. L. Bellot Rubio is funded by grants AYA2012-39636-C06-05 and ESP2013-47349-C6-1-R of the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad, including a percentage from European FEDER funds.Peer Reviewe
The history of a quiet-Sun magnetic element revealed by IMaX/SUNRISE
Isolated flux tubes are considered to be fundamental magnetic building blocks
of the solar photosphere. Their formation is usually attributed to the
concentration of magnetic field to kG strengths by the convective collapse
mechanism. However, the small size of the magnetic elements in quiet-Sun areas
has prevented this scenario from being studied in fully resolved structures.
Here we report on the formation and subsequent evolution of one such
photospheric magnetic flux tube, observed in the quiet Sun with unprecedented
spatial resolution (0\farcs 15 - 0\farcs 18) and high temporal cadence (33 s).
The observations were acquired by the Imaging Magnetograph Experiment (IMaX)
aboard the \textsc{Sunrise} balloon-borne solar observatory. The equipartition
field strength magnetic element is the result of the merging of several same
polarity magnetic flux patches, including a footpoint of a previously emerged
loop. The magnetic structure is then further intensified to kG field strengths
by convective collapse. The fine structure found within the flux concentration
reveals that the scenario is more complex than can be described by a thin flux
tube model with bright points and downflow plumes being established near the
edges of the kG magnetic feature. We also observe a daisy-like alignment of
surrounding granules and a long-lived inflow towards the magnetic feature.
After a subsequent weakening process, the field is again intensified to kG
strengths. The area of the magnetic feature is seen to change in anti-phase
with the field strength, while the brightness of the bright points and the
speed of the downflows varies in phase. We also find a relation between the
brightness of the bright point and the presence of upflows within it.Comment: 13 pages. Accepted in ApJ. Animation 1 can be viewed and downloaded
from: http://spg.iaa.es/downloads.as
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