64 research outputs found
Temporal evolution of arch filaments as seen in He I 10830 \r{A}
We study the evolution of an arch filament system (AFS) and of its individual
arch filaments to learn about the processes occurring in them. We observed the
AFS at the GREGOR solar telescope on Tenerife at high cadence with the very
fast spectroscopic mode of the GREGOR Infrared Spectrograph (GRIS) in the He I
10830 \AA\ spectral range. The He I triplet profiles were fitted with analytic
functions to infer line-of-sight (LOS) velocities to follow plasma motions
within the AFS. We tracked the temporal evolution of an individual arch
filament over its entire lifetime, as seen in the He I 10830 \AA\ triplet. The
arch filament expanded in height and extended in length from 13" to 21". The
lifetime of this arch filament is about 30 min. About 11 min after the arch
filament is seen in He I, the loop top starts to rise with an average Doppler
velocity of 6 km/s. Only two minutes later, plasma drains down with supersonic
velocities towards the footpoints reaching a peak velocity of up to 40 km/s in
the chromosphere. The temporal evolution of He I 10830 \AA\ profiles near the
leading pore showed almost ubiquitous dual red components of the He I triplet,
indicating strong downflows, along with material nearly at rest within the same
resolution element during the whole observing time. We followed the arch
filament as it carried plasma during its rise from the photosphere to the
corona. The material then drained toward the photosphere, reaching supersonic
velocities, along the legs of the arch filament. Our observational results
support theoretical AFS models and aids in improving future models.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics, 12 pages, 15
figures, 1 online movi
Ca II 8542 \AA\ brightenings induced by a solar microflare
We study small-scale brightenings in Ca II 8542 \AA\ line-core images to
determine their nature and effect on localized heating and mass transfer in
active regions. High-resolution 2D spectroscopic observations of an active
region in the Ca II 8542 \AA\ line were acquired with the GFPI attached to the
1.5-meter GREGOR telescope. Inversions of the spectra were carried out using
NICOLE. We identified three brightenings of sizes up to 2"x2". We found
evidence that the brightenings belonged to the footpoints of a microflare (MF).
The properties of the observed brightenings disqualified the scenarios of
Ellerman bombs or IRIS bombs. However, this MF shared some common properties
with flaring active-region fibrils or flaring arch filaments (FAFs): (1) FAFs
and MFs are both apparent in chromospheric and coronal layers according to the
AIA channels, and (2) both show flaring arches with lifetimes of about 3.0-3.5
min and lengths of about 20". The inversions revealed heating by 600 K at the
footpoint location in the ambient chromosphere during the impulsive phase.
Connecting the footpoints, a dark filamentary structure appeared in the Ca II
line-core images. Before the start of the MF, the spectra of this structure
already indicated average blueshifts, meaning upward motions of the plasma
along the LOS. During the impulsive phase, these velocities increased up to
-2.2 km/s. Downflows dominated at the footpoints. However, in the upper
photosphere, slight upflows occurred during the impulsive phase. Hence,
bidirectional flows are present in the footpoints of the MF. Conclusions: We
detected Ca II brightenings that coincided with the footpoint location of an
MF. The MF event led to a rise of plasma in the upper photosphere, both before
and during the impulsive phase. Excess mass, previously raised to at most
chromospheric layers, slowly drained downward along arches toward the
footpoints of the MF.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics, 13 pages, 6
figures, 1 online movi
High-resolution imaging and near-infrared spectroscopy of penumbral decay
Combining high-resolution spectropolarimetric and imaging data is key to
understanding the decay process of sunspots as it allows us scrutinizing the
velocity and magnetic fields of sunspots and their surroundings. Active region
NOAA 12597 was observed on 24/09/2016 with the 1.5-m GREGOR solar telescope
using high-spatial resolution imaging as well as imaging spectroscopy and
near-infrared (NIR) spectropolarimetry. Horizontal proper motions were
estimated with LCT, whereas LOS velocities were computed with spectral line
fitting methods. The magnetic field properties were inferred with the SIR code
for the Si I and Ca I NIR lines. At the time of the GREGOR observations, the
leading sunspot had two light-bridges indicating the onset of its decay. One of
the light-bridges disappeared, and an elongated, dark umbral core at its edge
appeared in a decaying penumbral sector facing the newly emerging flux. The
flow and magnetic field properties of this penumbral sector exhibited weak
Evershed flow, moat flow, and horizontal magnetic field. The penumbral gap
adjacent to the elongated umbral core and the penumbra in that penumbral sector
displayed LOS velocities similar to granulation. The separating polarities of a
new flux system interacted with the leading and central part of the already
established active region. As a consequence, the leading spot rotated 55-degree
in clockwise direction over 12 hours. In the high-resolution observations of a
decaying sunspot, the penumbral filaments facing flux emergence site contained
a darkened area resembling an umbral core filled with umbral dots. This umbral
core had velocity and magnetic field properties similar to the sunspot umbra.
This implies that the horizontal magnetic fields in the decaying penumbra
became vertical as observed in flare-induced rapid penumbral decay, but on a
very different time-scale.Comment: 14 pages, 11 figures, Accepted to be published in Astronomy and
Astrophysic
Photospheric Magnetic Fields of the Trailing Sunspots in Active Region NOAA 12396
The solar magnetic field is responsible for all aspects of solar activity.
Sunspots are the main manifestation of the ensuing solar activity. Combining
high-resolution and synoptic observations has the ambition to provide a
comprehensive description of the sunspot growth and decay processes. Active
region NOAA 12396 emerged on 2015 August 3 and was observed three days later
with the 1.5-meter GREGOR solar telescope on 2015 August 6. High-resolution
spectropolarimetric data from the GREGOR Infrared Spectrograph (GRIS) are
obtained in the photospheric Si I 1082.7 nm and Ca I 1083.9
nm lines, together with the chromospheric He I 1083.0 nm triplet.
These near-infrared spectropolarimetric observations were complemented by
synoptic line-of-sight magnetograms and continuum images of the Helioseismic
and Magnetic Imager (HMI) and EUV images of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly
(AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO).Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, to be published in "Solar Polarization Workshop
8", ASP Proceedings, Luca Belluzzi (eds.
- …