JPEG2000 Image Compression on Solar EUV Images

For future solar missions as well as ground-based telescopes, efficient ways to return and process data have become increasingly important. Solar Orbiter, e.g., which is the next ESA/NASA mission to explore the Sun and the heliosphere, is a deep-space mission, which implies a limited telemetry rate that makes efficient onboard data compression a necessity to achieve the mission science goals. Missions like the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and future ground-based telescopes such as the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, on the other hand, face the challenge of making petabyte-sized solar data archives accessible to the solar community. New image compression standards address these challenges by implementing efficient and flexible compression algorithms that can be tailored to user requirements. We analyse solar images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument onboard SDO to study the effect of lossy JPEG2000 (from the Joint Photographic Experts Group 2000) image compression at different bit rates. To assess the quality of compressed images, we use the mean structural similarity (MSSIM) index as well as the widely used peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) as metrics and compare the two in the context of solar EUV images. In addition, we perform tests to validate the scientific use of the lossily compressed images by analysing examples of an on-disk and off-limb coronal-loop oscillation time-series observed by AIA/SDO.Comment: 25 pages, published in Solar Physic

A weakly nonlinear Alfvénic pulse in a transversely inhomogeneous medium

The interaction of a weakly nonlinear Alfvénic pulse with an Alfvén speed inhomogeneity in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field is investigated. Identical to the phase mixing experienced by a harmonic Alfvén wave, sharp transverse gradients are generated in the pulse by the inhomogeneity. In the initial stage of the evolution of an initially plane Alfvénic pulse, the transverse gradients efficiently generate transversely propagating fast magnetoacoustic waves. However, high resolution full MHD numerical simulations of the developed stage of the pulse evolution show that the generation saturates due to destructive wave interference. It is shown that the weakly non-linear description of the generated fast magnetoacoustic wave is well described by the driven wave equation proposed in Nakariakov et al. (1997), and a simple numerical code (2D MacCromack), which solves it with minimal CPU resources, produces identical results to those obtained from the full MHD code (Lare2d, Arber et al. 2001). A parametric study of the phenomenon is undertaken, showing that, contrary to one's expectations, steeper inhomogeneities of the Alfvén speed do not produce higher saturation levels of the fast wave generation. There is a certain optimal gradient of the inhomogeneity that ensures the maximal efficiency of the fast wave generation

Nonlinear wave propagation and reconnection at magnetic X-points in the Hall MHD regime

The highly dynamical, complex nature of the solar atmosphere naturally implies the presence of waves in a topologically varied magnetic environment. Here, the interaction of waves with topological features such as null points is inevitable and potentially important for energetics. The low resistivity of the solar coronal plasma implies that non-MHD effects should be considered in studies of magnetic energy release in this environment. This paper investigates the role of the Hall term in the propagation and dissipation of waves, their interaction with 2D magnetic X-points and the nature of the resulting reconnection. A Lagrangian remap shock-capturing code (Lare2d) is used to study the evolution of an initial fast magnetoacoustic wave annulus for a range of values of the ion skin depth in resistive Hall MHD. A magnetic null-point finding algorithm is also used to locate and track the evolution of the multiple null-points that are formed in the system. Depending on the ratio of ion skin depth to system size, our model demonstrates that Hall effects can play a key role in the wave-null interaction. In particular, the initial fast-wave pulse now consists of whistler and ion-cyclotron components; the dispersive nature of the whistler wave leads to (i) earlier interaction with the null, (ii) the creation of multiple additional, transient nulls and, hence, an increased number of energy release sites. In the Hall regime, the relevant timescales (such as the onset of reconnection and the period of the oscillatory relaxation) of the system are reduced significantly, and the reconnection rate is enhanced.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figure

Coronal seismology using damping of propagating kink waves

Funding: D.J.P. and T.V.D. were supported by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement No. 724326) and the C1 grant TRACEspace of Internal Funds KU Leuven. The research leading to these results has received funding from the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (consolidated grant ST/N000609/1), the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement No. 647214). I.D.M. received funding from the Research Council of Norway through its Centres of Excellence scheme, project number 262622.We consider the use of propagating kink waves, such as those observed by the Coronal Multi-channel Polarimeter, as a diagnostic technique. The transverse structuring of the plasma may be inferred by the frequency-dependent wave damping, which is attributed to resonant absorption. We include the effect of reflection of waves at the loop footpoints, which leads to the asymmetry parameter, describing the ratio of driven wave power at the footpoints becoming weakly constrained. The classical model of resonant absorption based on an exponential damping profile significantly overestimates the damping rate in coronal loops with low density contrast ratios. The use of the exponential profile in an analysis of observations therefore leads to underestimates for the density contrast ratio and associated parameters such as the heating rate following phase mixing.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Twisting Flux Tubes as a cause of Micro-Flaring Activity

High-cadence optical observations of an H-alpha blue-wing bright point near solar AR NOAA 10794 are presented. The data were obtained with the Dunn Solar Telescope at the National Solar Observatory/Sacramento Peak using a newly developed camera system, the Rapid Dual Imager. Wavelet analysis is undertaken to search for intensity-related oscillatory signatures, and periodicities ranging from 15 to 370 s are found with significance levels exceeding 95%. During two separate microflaring events, oscillation sites surrounding the bright point are observed to twist. We relate the twisting of the oscillation sites to the twisting of physical flux tubes, thus giving rise to reconnection phenomena. We derive an average twist velocity of 8.1 km/s and detect a peak in the emitted flux between twist angles of 180 and 230 degrees.Comment: 8 pages, 10 figure

A new approach for modelling chromospheric evaporation in response to enhanced coronal heating : II. Non-uniform heating

This project has received funding from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (UK) through the consolidated grant ST/N000609/1 and the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program (grant agreement No 647214).We proposed that the use of an approximate “jump condition” at the solar transition region permits fast and accurate numerical solutions of the one dimensional hydrodynamic equations when the corona undergoes impulsive heating. In particular, it eliminates the need for the very short timesteps imposed by a highly resolved numerical grid. This paper presents further examples of the applicability of the method for cases of non-uniform heating, in particular, nanoflare trains (uniform in space but non-uniform in time) and spatially localised impulsive heating, including at the loop apex and base of the transition region. In all cases the overall behaviour of the coronal density and temperature shows good agreement with a fully resolved one dimensional model and is significantly better than the equivalent results from a 1D code run without using the jump condition but with the same coarse grid. A detailed assessment of the errors introduced by the jump condition is presented showing that the causes of discrepancy with the fully resolved code are (i) the neglect of the terms corresponding to the rate of change of total energy in the unresolved atmosphere; (ii) mass motions at the base of the transition region and (iii) for some cases with footpoint heating, an over-estimation of the radiative losses in the transition region.PostprintPeer reviewe

Network oscillations at the boundary of an equatorial coronal hole

We investigate intensity oscillations observed simultaneously in the quiet chromosphere and in the corona, above an enhanced network area at the boundary of an equatorial coronal hole. A Fourier analysis is applied to a sequence of images observed in the 171 A and 1600 A passbands of TRACE. Four interesting features above the magnetic network are further investigated by using a wavelet analysis. Our results reveal that, in both the 171 A and 1600 A passbands, oscillations above the magnetic network show a lack of power at high frequencies (5.0-8.3 mHz), and a significant power at low (1.3-2.0 mHz) and intermediate frequencies (2.6-4.0 mHz). The global 5-min oscillation is clearly present in the 4 analyzed features when seen in the 1600 A passband, and is also found with enhanced power in feature 1 (leg of a large coronal loop) and feature 2 (legs of a coronal bright point loop) when seen in the 171 A passband. Two features above an enhanced network element (feature 3 and feature 4) show repeated propagating behaviors with a dominant period of 10 min and 5 min, respectively. We suggest these oscillations are likely to be slow magneto-acoustic waves propagating along inclined magnetic field lines, from the lower solar atmosphere into the corona. The energy flux carried by these waves is estimated of the order of 40 erg cm\^{-2} s\^{-1} for the 171 A passband and is far lower than the energy required to heat the quiet corona. For the 1600 A passband, the energy flux is about 1.4*10^6 erg cm\^{-2} s\^{-1}, which is about one third of the required energy budget for the chromosphere.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figure

Transverse wave induced Kelvin-Helmholtz rolls in spicules

This research has received funding from the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (Consolidated Grant ST/K000950/1) and the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 647214).In addition to their jet-like dynamic behaviour, spicules usually exhibit strong transverse speeds, multi-stranded structure and heating from chromospheric to transition region temperatures. In this work we first analyse Hinode & IRIS observations of spicules and find different behaviours in terms of their Doppler velocity evolution and collective motion of their sub-structure. Some have a Doppler shift sign change that is rather fixed along the spicule axis, and lack coherence in the oscillatory motion of strand-like structure, matching rotation models or long wavelength torsional Alfvén waves. Others exhibit a Doppler shift sign change at maximum displacement and coherent motion of their strands, suggesting a collective MHD wave. By comparing with an idealised 3D MHD simulation combined with radiative transfer modelling, we analyse the role of transverse MHD waves and associated instabilities in spicule-like features. We find that Transverse Wave Induced Kelvin-Helmholtz (TWIKH) rolls lead to coherence of strand-like structure in imaging and spectral maps, as seen in some observations. The rapid transverse dynamics and the density and temperature gradients at the spicule boundary lead to ring-shaped Mg II k and Ca II H source functions in the transverse cross-section, potentially allowing IRIS to capture the KHI dynamics. Twists and currents propagate along the spicule at Alfvénic speeds, and the temperature variations within TWIKH rolls produce sudden appearance/disappearance of strands seen in Doppler velocity and in Ca II H intensity. However, only a mild intensity increase in higher temperature lines is obtained, suggesting there is an additional heating mechanism at work in spicules.PostprintPeer reviewe

Chromospheric evaporation and phase mixing of Alfvén waves in coronal loops

This work has received support from the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (Consolidated Grant ST/K000950/1), the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 647214) and the Research Council of Norway through its Centres of Excellence scheme, project number 262622.Context. Phase mixing of Alfvén waves has been studied extensively as a possible coronal heating mechanism but without the full thermodynamic consequences considered self-consistently. It has been argued that in some cases, the thermodynamic feedback of the heating could substantially affect the transverse density gradient and even inhibit the phase mixing process. Aims. In this paper, for the first time, we use magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations with the appropriate thermodynamical terms included to quantify the evaporation following heating by phase mixing of Alfvén waves in a coronal loop and the effect of this evaporation on the transverse density profile. Methods. The numerical simulations were performed using the Lagrangian Remap code Lare2D. We set up a 2D loop model consisting of a field-aligned thermodynamic equilibrium and a cross-field (background) heating profile. A continuous, sinusoidal, high-frequency Alfvén wave driver was implemented. As the Alfvén waves propagate along the field, they undergo phase mixing due to the cross-field density gradient in the coronal part of the loop. We investigated the presence of field-aligned flows, heating from the dissipation of the phase-mixed Alfvén waves, and the subsequent evaporation from the lower atmosphere. Results. We find that phase mixing of Alfvén waves leads to modest heating in the shell regions of the loop and evaporation of chromospheric material into the corona with upflows of the order of only 5–20 m s−1. Although the evaporation leads to a mass increase in the shell regions of the loop, the effect on the density gradient and, hence, on the phase mixing process, is insignificant. Conclusions. This paper self-consistently investigates the effect of chromospheric evaporation on the cross-field density gradient and the phase mixing process in a coronal loop. We found that the effects in our particular setup (small amplitude, high frequency waves) are too small to significantly change the density gradient.PostprintPeer reviewe