6,027 research outputs found
Numerical sunspot models: Robustness of photospheric velocity and magnetic field structure
MHD simulations of sunspots have successfully reproduced many aspects of
sunspot fine structure as consequence of magneto convection in inclined
magnetic field. We study how global sunspot properties and penumbral fine
structure depend on the magnetic top boundary condition as well as on grid
spacing. The overall radial extent of the penumbra is subject to the magnetic
top boundary condition. All other aspects of sunspot structure and penumbral
fine structure are resolved at an acceptable level starting from a grid
resolution of 48 [24] km (horizontal [vertical]). We find that the amount of
inverse polarity flux and the overall amount of overturning convective motions
in the penumbra are robust with regard to both, resolution and boundary
conditions. At photospheric levels Evershed flow channels are strongly
magnetized. We discuss in detail the relation between velocity and magnetic
field structure in the photosphere and point out observational consequences.Comment: 23 pages, 22 figures, 2 movies, accepted for publication in Ap
Can overturning motions in penumbral filaments be detected?
Numerical simulations indicate that the filamentation of sunspot penumbrae
and the associated systematic outflow (the Evershed effect) are due to
convectively driven fluid motions constrained by the inclined magnetic field.
We investigate whether these motions, in particular the upflows in the bright
filaments and the downflows at their edges can be reliably observed with
existing instrumentation. We use a snapshot from a sunspot simulation to
calculate 2D maps of synthetic line profiles for the spectral lines Fe\sci
7090.4 \AA ~ and C\sci 5380.34 \AA. The maps are spatially and spectrally
degraded according to typical instrument properties. Line-of-sight velocities
are determined from line bisector shifts. We find that the detectability of the
convective flows is strongly affected by spatial smearing, particularly so for
the downflows. Furthermore, the line-of-sight velocities are dominated by the
Evershed flow unless the observation is made very near to disk center. These
problems may have compromised recent attempts to detect overturning penumbral
convection. Lines with a low formation height are best suited to detect the
convective flows.Comment: 8 pages, 12 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ on 28th Ju
Subsurface magnetic field and flow structure of simulated sunspots
We present a series of numerical sunspot models addressing the subsurface
field and flow structure in up to 16 Mm deep domains covering up to 2 days of
temporal evolution. Changes in the photospheric appearance of the sunspots are
driven by subsurface flows in several Mm depth. Most of magnetic field is
pushed into a downflow vertex of the subsurface convection pattern, while some
fraction of the flux separates from the main trunk of the spot. Flux separation
in deeper layers is accompanied in the photosphere with light bridge formation
in the early stages and formation of pores separating from the spot at later
stages. Over a time scale of less than a day we see the development of a large
scale flow pattern surrounding the sunspots, which is dominated by a radial
outflow reaching about 50% of the convective rms velocity in amplitude. Several
components of the large scale flow are found to be independent from the
presence of a penumbra and the associated Evershed flow. While the simulated
sunspots lead to blockage of heat flux in the near surface layers, we do not
see compelling evidence for a brightness enhancement in their periphery. We
further demonstrate that the influence of the bottom boundary condition on the
stability and long-term evolution of the sunspot is significantly reduced in a
16 Mm deep domain compared to the shallower domains considered previously.Comment: 20 pages, 14 figures, 4 animations, accepted for publication in Ap
- …