High flow speeds and transition-region like temperatures in the solar chromosphere during flux emergence

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Leenaarts, J., van Noort, M., Rodríguez, J. de la Cruz, Danilovic, S., Baso, C. J. Díaz, Hilberg, T., Sütterlin, P., Kiselman, D., Scharmer, G., Solanki, S.
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Publié: 2025
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author Leenaarts, J.
van Noort, M.
Rodríguez, J. de la Cruz
Danilovic, S.
Baso, C. J. Díaz
Hilberg, T.
Sütterlin, P.
Kiselman, D.
Scharmer, G.
Solanki, S.
author_facet Leenaarts, J.
van Noort, M.
Rodríguez, J. de la Cruz
Danilovic, S.
Baso, C. J. Díaz
Hilberg, T.
Sütterlin, P.
Kiselman, D.
Scharmer, G.
Solanki, S.
contents Context: Flux emergence in the solar atmosphere is a complex process that causes a release of magnetic energy as heat and acceleration of solar plasma at a variety of spatial scales. Methods: We analysed imaging spectropolarimetric data taken in the He 1083 nm line. This line is sensitive to temperatures larger than 15 kK, unlike diagnostics such as \MgIIhk, \CaIIHK, and \Halpha, which lose sensitivity already at 15 kK. The He I data is complemented by imaging spectropolarimetry in the \CaIIK, \Feline, and \Caline\ lines. We employed inversions to determine the magnetic field and vertical velocity in the solar atmosphere. We computed He 1083 nm profiles from a radiation-MHD simulation of the solar atmosphere to help interpretation of the observations. Results: We find fast-evolving blob-like emission features in the He 1083 nm triplet at locations where the magnetic field is rapidly changing direction, and these are likely sites of magnetic reconnection. We fit the line with a model consisting of an emitting layer located below a cold layer representing the fibril canopy. The modelling provides evidence that this model, while simple, catches the essential characteristics of the line formation. The morphology of the emission in the He 1083 nm line is localized and blob-like, unlike the emission in the \CaIIK\ line, which is more filamentary. Conclusions: The modelling shows that the \Heline\ emission features and their Doppler shifts can be caused by opposite-polarity reconnection and/or horizontal current sheets below the canopy layer in the chromosphere. Based on the high observed Doppler width and the blob-like appearance of the emission features, we conjecture that at least a fraction of them are produced by plasmoids. We conclude that transition-region-like temperatures in the deeper layers of the active region chromosphere are more common than previously thought.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2501_10246
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle High flow speeds and transition-region like temperatures in the solar chromosphere during flux emergence
Leenaarts, J.
van Noort, M.
Rodríguez, J. de la Cruz
Danilovic, S.
Baso, C. J. Díaz
Hilberg, T.
Sütterlin, P.
Kiselman, D.
Scharmer, G.
Solanki, S.
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Context: Flux emergence in the solar atmosphere is a complex process that causes a release of magnetic energy as heat and acceleration of solar plasma at a variety of spatial scales. Methods: We analysed imaging spectropolarimetric data taken in the He 1083 nm line. This line is sensitive to temperatures larger than 15 kK, unlike diagnostics such as \MgIIhk, \CaIIHK, and \Halpha, which lose sensitivity already at 15 kK. The He I data is complemented by imaging spectropolarimetry in the \CaIIK, \Feline, and \Caline\ lines. We employed inversions to determine the magnetic field and vertical velocity in the solar atmosphere. We computed He 1083 nm profiles from a radiation-MHD simulation of the solar atmosphere to help interpretation of the observations. Results: We find fast-evolving blob-like emission features in the He 1083 nm triplet at locations where the magnetic field is rapidly changing direction, and these are likely sites of magnetic reconnection. We fit the line with a model consisting of an emitting layer located below a cold layer representing the fibril canopy. The modelling provides evidence that this model, while simple, catches the essential characteristics of the line formation. The morphology of the emission in the He 1083 nm line is localized and blob-like, unlike the emission in the \CaIIK\ line, which is more filamentary. Conclusions: The modelling shows that the \Heline\ emission features and their Doppler shifts can be caused by opposite-polarity reconnection and/or horizontal current sheets below the canopy layer in the chromosphere. Based on the high observed Doppler width and the blob-like appearance of the emission features, we conjecture that at least a fraction of them are produced by plasmoids. We conclude that transition-region-like temperatures in the deeper layers of the active region chromosphere are more common than previously thought.
title High flow speeds and transition-region like temperatures in the solar chromosphere during flux emergence
topic Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.10246