185 research outputs found
A new type of small-scale downflow patches in sunspot penumbrae
A sunspot penumbra is observationally examined to reveal properties of
small-scale flow structures and how they are related to the filamentary
magnetic structures and the Evershed flow. We also study how the photospheric
dynamics is related to chromospheric activities. The study is based on data
analysis of spectro-polarimetric observations of photospheric Fe I lines with
the Solar Optical Telescope aboard Hinode in a sunspot penumbra at different
heliocentric angles. Vector magnetic fields and velocities are derived using
the spectro-polarimetric data and a Stokes inversion technique. An observation
with a Ca II H filtergram co-spatial and co-temporal with the
spectro-polarimetric one is also used to study possible chromospheric
responses. We find small patches with downflows at photospheric layers. The
downflow patches have a size of 0.5" or smaller and have a geometrical
configuration different from that of the Evershed flow. The downflow velocity
is about 1 km/s at lower photspheric layers, and is almost zero in the upper
layers. Some of the downflow patches are associated with brightenings seen in
Ca II H images. The downflows are possible observational signatures of downward
flows driven by magnetic reconnection in the interlaced magnetic field
configuration, where upward flows make brightenings in the chromosphere.
Another possibility is that they are concentrated downward flows of overturning
magnetoconvection.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
The properties of penumbral microjets inclination
We investigate the dependence of penumbral microjets inclination on the
position within penumbra. The high cadence observations taken on 10 November
2006 with the Hinode satellite through the \ion{Ca}{ii} H and G--band filters
were analysed to determine the inclination of penumbral microjets. The results
were then compared with the inclination of the magnetic field determined
through the inversion of the spectropolarimetric observations of the same
region. The penumbral microjet inclination is increasing towards the outer edge
of the penumbra. The results suggest that the penumbral microjet follows the
opening magnetic field lines of a vertical flux tube that creates the sunspot.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, A&A Letter in pres
Chromospheric polarimetry through multi-line observations of the 850 nm spectral region
Future solar missions and ground-based telescopes aim to understand the
magnetism of the solar chromosphere. We performed a supporting study in
Quintero Noda et al. (2016) focused on the infrared Ca II 8542 A line and we
concluded that is one of the best candidates because it is sensitive to a large
range of atmospheric heights, from the photosphere to the middle chromosphere.
However, we believe that it is worth to try improving the results produced by
this line observing additional spectral lines. In that regard, we examined the
neighbour solar spectrum looking for spectral lines that could increase the
sensitivity to the atmospheric parameters. Interestingly, we discovered several
photospheric lines that greatly improve the photospheric sensitivity to the
magnetic field vector. Moreover, they are located close to a second
chromospheric line that also belongs to the Ca II infrared triplet, i.e. the Ca
II 8498 A line, and enhances the sensitivity to the atmospheric parameters at
chromospheric layers. We conclude that the lines in the vicinity of the Ca II
8542 A line not only increase its sensitivity to the atmospheric parameters at
all layers, but also they constitute an excellent spectral window for
chromospheric polarimetry.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, 1 tabl
Signatures of Coronal Heating Mechanisms
Alfven waves created by sub-photospheric motions or by magnetic reconnection
in the low solar atmosphere seem good candidates for coronal heating. However,
the corona is also likely to be heated more directly by magnetic reconnection,
with dissipation taking place in current sheets. Distinguishing observationally
between these two heating mechanisms is an extremely difficult task. We perform
1.5-dimensional MHD simulations of a coronal loop subject to each type of
heating and derive observational quantities that may allow these to be
differentiated.Comment: To appear in "Magnetic Coupling between the Interior and the
Atmosphere of the Sun", eds. S.S. Hasan and R.J. Rutten, Astrophysics and
Space Science Proceedings, Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, Berlin, 200
Solar polarimetry through the K I lines at 770 nm
We characterize the K I D1 & D2 lines in order to determine whether they
could complement the 850 nm window, containing the Ca II infrared triplet lines
and several Zeeman sensitive photospheric lines, that was studied previously.
We investigate the effect of partial redistribution on the intensity profiles,
their sensitivity to changes in different atmospheric parameters, and the
spatial distribution of Zeeman polarization signals employing a realistic
magnetohydrodynamic simulation. The results show that these lines form in the
upper photosphere at around 500 km and that they are sensitive to the line of
sight velocity and magnetic field strength at heights where neither the
photospheric lines nor the Ca II infrared lines are. However, at the same time,
we found that their sensitivity to the temperature essentially comes from the
photosphere. Then, we conclude that the K I lines provide a complement to the
lines in the 850 nm window for the determination of atmospheric parameters in
the upper photosphere, especially for the line of sight velocity and the
magnetic field.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, main journal publicatio
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