scholarly journals Transient brightenings in the quiet Sun detected by ALMA at 3 mm

2020 ◽  
Vol 638 ◽  
pp. A62 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Nindos ◽  
C. E. Alissandrakis ◽  
S. Patsourakos ◽  
T. S. Bastian
Keyword(s):  
Solar Atmosphere ◽  
Power Law ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
Average Intensity ◽  
Quiet Sun ◽  
Brightness Temperatures ◽  
Weak Preference ◽  
Thermal Origin ◽  
First Time

Aims. We investigate transient brightenings, that is, weak, small-scale episodes of energy release, in the quiet solar chromosphere; these episodes can provide insights into the heating mechanism of the outer layers of the solar atmosphere. Methods. Using Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations, we performed the first systematic survey for quiet Sun transient brightenings at 3 mm. Our dataset included images of six 87″ × 87″ fields of view of the quiet Sun obtained with angular resolution of a few arcsec at a cadence of 2 s. The transient brightenings were detected as weak enhancements above the average intensity after we removed the effect of the p-mode oscillations. A similar analysis, over the same fields of view, was performed for simultaneous 304 and 1600 Å data obtained with the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly. Results. We detected 184 3 mm transient brightening events with brightness temperatures from 70 K to more than 500 K above backgrounds of ∼7200 − 7450 K. All events showed light curves with a gradual rise and fall, strongly suggesting a thermal origin. Their mean duration and maximum area were 51.1 s and 12.3 Mm2, respectively, with a weak preference of appearing at network boundaries rather than in cell interiors. Both parameters exhibited power-law behavior with indices of 2.35 and 2.71, respectively. Only a small fraction of ALMA events had either 304 or 1600 Å counterparts but the properties of these events were not significantly different from those of the general population except that they lacked their low-end energy values. The total thermal energies of the ALMA transient brightenings were between 1.5 × 1024 and 9.9 × 1025 erg and their frequency distribution versus energy was a power law with an index of 1.67 ± 0.05. We found that the power per unit area provided by the ALMA events could account for only 1% of the chromospheric radiative losses (10% of the coronal ones). Conclusions. We were able to detect, for the first time, a significant number of weak 3 mm quiet Sun transient brightenings. However, their energy budget falls short of meeting the requirements for the heating of the upper layers of the solar atmosphere and this conclusion does not change even if we use the least restrictive criteria possible for the detection of transient brightenings.

scholarly journals Signatures of ubiquitous magnetic reconnection in the lower solar atmosphere

2020 ◽  
Vol 641 ◽  
pp. L5
Author(s):  
Jayant Joshi ◽  
Luc H. M. Rouppe van der Voort ◽  
Jaime de la Cruz Rodríguez
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Reconnection ◽  
Solar Atmosphere ◽  
Solar Limb ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Balmer Line ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
Quiet Sun ◽  
Single Moment ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Lower Solar Atmosphere

Ellerman Bomb-like brightenings of the hydrogen Balmer line wings in the quiet Sun, also known as quiet Sun Ellerman bombs (QSEBs), are a signature of the fundamental process of magnetic reconnection at the smallest observable scale in the lower solar atmosphere. We analyze high spatial resolution observations (0.″1) obtained with the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope to explore signatures of QSEBs in the Hβ line. We find that QSEBs are ubiquitous and uniformly distributed throughout the quiet Sun, predominantly occurring in intergranular lanes. We find up to 120 QSEBs in the field of view for a single moment in time; this is more than an order of magnitude higher than the number of QSEBs found in earlier Hα observations. This suggests that about half a million QSEBs could be present in the lower solar atmosphere at any given time. The QSEB brightenings found in the Hβ line wings also persist in the line core with a temporal delay and spatial offset toward the nearest solar limb. Our results suggest that QSEBs emanate through magnetic reconnection along vertically extended current sheets in the lower solar atmosphere. The apparent omnipresence of small-scale magnetic reconnection may play an important role in the energy balance of the solar chromosphere.

scholarly journals The Sun at millimeter wavelengths

2020 ◽  
Vol 635 ◽  
pp. A71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sven Wedemeyer ◽  
Mikolaj Szydlarski ◽  
Shahin Jafarzadeh ◽  
Henrik Eklund ◽  
Juan Camilo Guevara Gomez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brightness Temperature ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Angular Resolution ◽  
Band 3 ◽  
Total Power ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Brightness Temperatures ◽  
Diagnostic Potential

Context. The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) started regular observations of the Sun in 2016, first offering receiver Band 3 at wavelengths near 3 mm (100 GHz) and Band 6 at wavelengths around 1.25 mm (239 GHz). Aims. Here we present an initial study of one of the first ALMA Band 3 observations of the Sun. Our aim is to characterise the diagnostic potential of brightness temperatures measured with ALMA on the Sun. Methods. The observation covers a duration of 48 min at a cadence of 2 s targeting a quiet Sun region at disc-centre. Corresponding time series of brightness temperature maps are constructed with the first version of the Solar ALMA Pipeline and compared to simultaneous observations with the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Results. The angular resolution of the observations is set by the synthesised beam, an elliptical Gaussian that is approximately 1.4″ × 2.1″ in size. The ALMA maps exhibit network patches, internetwork regions, and elongated thin features that are connected to large-scale magnetic loops, as confirmed by a comparison with SDO maps. The ALMA Band 3 maps correlate best with the SDO/AIA 171 Å, 131 Å, and 304 Å channels in that they exhibit network features and, although very weak in the ALMA maps, imprints of large-scale loops. A group of compact magnetic loops is very clearly visible in ALMA Band 3. The brightness temperatures in the loop tops reach values of about 8000−9000 K and in extreme moments up to 10 000 K. Conclusions. ALMA Band 3 interferometric observations from early observing cycles already reveal temperature differences in the solar chromosphere. The weak imprint of magnetic loops and the correlation with the 171, 131, and 304 SDO channels suggests, however, that the radiation mapped in ALMA Band 3 might have contributions from a wider range of atmospheric heights than previously assumed, but the exact formation height of Band 3 needs to be investigated in more detail. The absolute brightness temperature scale as set by total power measurements remains less certain and must be improved in the future. Despite these complications and the limited angular resolution, ALMA Band 3 observations have a large potential for quantitative studies of the small-scale structure and dynamics of the solar chromosphere.

scholarly journals Characterization of shock wave signatures at millimetre wavelengths from Bifrost simulations

2020 ◽  
Vol 379 (2190) ◽  
pp. 20200185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henrik Eklund ◽  
Sven Wedemeyer ◽  
Ben Snow ◽  
David B. Jess ◽  
Shahin Jafarzadeh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Shock Wave ◽  
Wave Propagation ◽  
Brightness Temperature ◽  
Spectral Band ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Strong Shock ◽  
Shock Wave Propagation ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
Brightness Temperatures

Observations at millimetre wavelengths provide a valuable tool to study the small-scale dynamics in the solar chromosphere. We evaluate the physical conditions of the atmosphere in the presence of a propagating shock wave and link that to the observable signatures in mm-wavelength radiation, providing valuable insights into the underlying physics of mm-wavelength observations. A realistic numerical simulation from the three-dimensional radiative magnetohydrodynamic code Bifrost is used to interpret changes in the atmosphere caused by shock wave propagation. High-cadence (1 s) time series of brightness temperature ( T b ) maps are calculated with the Advanced Radiative Transfer code at the wavelengths 1.309 mm and 1.204 mm, which represents opposite sides of spectral band 6 of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). An example of shock wave propagation is presented. The brightness temperatures show a strong shock wave signature with large variation in formation height between approximately 0.7 and 1.4 Mm. The results demonstrate that millimetre brightness temperatures efficiently track upwardly propagating shock waves in the middle chromosphere. In addition, we show that the gradient of the brightness temperature between wavelengths within ALMA band 6 can potentially be used as a diagnostics tool in understanding the small-scale dynamics at the sampled layers. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue ‘High-resolution wave dynamics in the lower solar atmosphere’.

scholarly journals First analysis of solar structures in 1.21 mm full-disc ALMA image of the Sun

2018 ◽  
Vol 613 ◽  
pp. A17 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Brajša ◽  
D. Sudar ◽  
A. O. Benz ◽  
I. Skokić ◽  
M. Bárta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wavelength Range ◽  
Coronal Holes ◽  
Active Regions ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Quiet Sun ◽  
Brightness Temperatures ◽  
Coronal Bright Points ◽  
Magnetic Inversion ◽  
Spectral Ranges

Context. Various solar features can be seen in emission or absorption on maps of the Sun in the millimetre and submillimetre wavelength range. The recently installed Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA) is capable of observing the Sun in that wavelength range with an unprecedented spatial, temporal and spectral resolution. To interpret solar observations with ALMA, the first important step is to compare solar ALMA maps with simultaneous images of the Sun recorded in other spectral ranges. Aims. The first aim of the present work is to identify different structures in the solar atmosphere seen in the optical, infrared, and EUV parts of the spectrum (quiet Sun, active regions, prominences on the disc, magnetic inversion lines, coronal holes and coronal bright points) in a full-disc solar ALMA image. The second aim is to measure the intensities (brightness temperatures) of those structures and to compare them with the corresponding quiet Sun level. Methods. A full-disc solar image at 1.21 mm obtained on December 18, 2015, during a CSV-EOC campaign with ALMA is calibrated and compared with full-disc solar images from the same day in Hα line, in He I 1083 nm line core, and with various SDO images (AIA at 170 nm, 30.4 nm, 21.1 nm, 19.3 nm, and 17.1 nm and HMI magnetogram). The brightness temperatures of various structures are determined by averaging over corresponding regions of interest in the calibrated ALMA image. Results. Positions of the quiet Sun, active regions, prominences on the disc, magnetic inversion lines, coronal holes and coronal bright points are identified in the ALMA image. At the wavelength of 1.21 mm, active regions appear as bright areas (but sunspots are dark), while prominences on the disc and coronal holes are not discernible from the quiet Sun background, despite having slightly less intensity than surrounding quiet Sun regions. Magnetic inversion lines appear as large, elongated dark structures and coronal bright points correspond to ALMA bright points. Conclusions. These observational results are in general agreement with sparse earlier measurements at similar wavelengths. The identification of coronal bright points represents the most important new result. By comparing ALMA and other maps, it was found that the ALMA image was oriented properly and that the procedure of overlaying the ALMA image with other images is accurate at the 5 arcsec level. The potential of ALMA for physics of the solar chromosphere is emphasised.

scholarly journals Observations of small-scale energetic events in the solar transition region: explosive events, UV bursts, and network jets

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 58-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Хуан Чжэнхуа ◽  
Huang Zhenghua ◽  
Ли Бо ◽  
Li Bo ◽  
Ся Лидун ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transition Region ◽  
Solar Atmosphere ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
Imaging Data ◽  
Solar Transition Region ◽  
Solar Transition ◽  
Physical Mechanisms ◽  
Explosive Events

In this paper, we review observational aspects of three common small-scale energetic events in the solar transition region (TR), namely TR explosive events, ultraviolet bursts and jets. These events are defined in either (both) spectral or (and) imaging data. The development of multiple instruments capable of observing the TR has allowed researchers to gain numerous insights into these phenomena in recent years. These events have provided a proxy to study how mass and energy are transported between the solar chromosphere and the corona. As the physical mechanisms responsible for these small-scale events might be similar to the mechanisms responsible for large-scale phenomena, such as flares and coronal mass ejections, analysis of these events could also help our understanding of the solar atmosphere from small to large scales. The observations of these small-scale energetic events demonstrate that the TR is extremely dynamic and is a crucial layer in the solar atmosphere between the chromosphere and the corona.

scholarly journals A small-scale EUV jet in the quiet Sun region

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (S294) ◽  
pp. 555-559
Author(s):  
Junchao Hong ◽  
Yunchun Jiang ◽  
Ruisheng Zheng ◽  
Yi Bi
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Magnetic Fields ◽  
Magnetic Reconnection ◽  
Solar Atmosphere ◽  
Extreme Ultraviolet ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Quiet Sun ◽  
Filament Channel ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Using Data

AbstractSolar jets are typical proxies of small-scale magnetic reconnection events in the solar atmosphere. In this paper, we observe a small-scale jet in a solar quiet region, using data from SDO/Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI), with supplemental data from STEREO/EUVI. From HMI magnetograms and calculated photospheric flows, we find that the jet is related to the interaction between unipolar network fields and emerging internetwork bipoles at the boundary of a supergranular cell. In AIA extreme-ultraviolet images, the jet actually includes two successive plasma ejections along different directions. The first ejection follows a distorted path which guides plasma into a small filament channel nearby. However, the second one shot straight along another direction that is parallel with extrapolated potential magnetic field lines on the local. According to these observations, we advocate that during the jet eruption new emerging magnetic fields are reconnecting at the edge of the supergranular cell with different kinds of ambient fields from low (magnetic canopy) to high (high-reaching loops) to allow the occurrence of successive ejections along different directions.

scholarly journals Observations of small-scale energetic events in the solar transition region: explosive events, UV bursts, and network jets

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-73
Author(s):  
Хуан Чжэнхуа ◽  
Huang Zhenghua ◽  
Ли Бо ◽  
Li Bo ◽  
Ся Лидун ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transition Region ◽  
Solar Atmosphere ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
Imaging Data ◽  
Solar Transition Region ◽  
Solar Transition ◽  
Physical Mechanisms ◽  
Explosive Events

In this paper, we review observational aspects of three common small-scale energetic events in the solar transition region (TR), namely TR explosive events, ultraviolet bursts and jets. These events are defined in either (both) spectral or (and) imaging data. The development of multiple instruments capable of observing the TR has allowed researchers to gain numerous insights into these phenomena in recent years. These events have provided a proxy to study how mass and energy are transported between the solar chromosphere and the corona. As the physical mechanisms responsible for these small-scale events might be similar to the mechanisms responsible for large-scale phenomena, such as flares and coronal mass ejections, analysis of these events could also help our understanding of the solar atmosphere from small to large scales. The observations of these small-scale energetic events demonstrate that the TR is extremely dynamic and is a crucial layer in the solar atmosphere between the chromosphere and the corona.

HYDROLOGICAL REGIME AND FREEZING OF HUMMOCKY BOGS ON THE EUROPEAN NORTH OF RUSSIA

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 38-48
Author(s):  
V. I. Batuev ◽  
I. L. Kalyuzhny
Keyword(s):  
Water Level ◽  
Hydrological Regime ◽  
Average Intensity ◽  
Water Level Rise ◽  
Northern European ◽  
European North ◽  
Bog Waters ◽  
Northern European Russia ◽  
Seasonal Thawing ◽  
First Time

The development of the European North of Russia, where flat and high-hummocky bog complexes are spread, requires information on the processes of formation of their hydrological regime and freezing of this territory. For the first time, based on observational data, for the period from 1993 to 2013, characteristics of the hydrological regime and freezing of hummocky bogs in Northern European Russia are presented, the case study of the Lovozerskoye bog. The observations were carried out in accordance with the unified methods, approved for the specialized network of Roshydromet bog stations. The regularities of the formation of the hydrological regime of hummocky bogs have been revealed: bog water level drops dramatically from the beginning of freezing to the end of March, rises during snow melt period, slightly drops in summer and rises in autumn. The main feature of hummocky bogs is permafrost, which determines their specific structure. It has been discovered that gravitation snowmelt and liquid precipitation waters relatively quickly run down the hummocks over the frozen layer into hollows between them. Levels of bog waters on the hummocks are absent for a longer period of time. In spring, the amplitude of water level rise in swamplands is on average 60–80 cm. Air temperature and insulation properties of snow are the main factors that influence the bog freezing. Hummocks freeze out as deep as 63–65 cm, which corresponds to the depth of their seasonal thawing in the warm period of the year, and adjoin the permafrost. The greatest depth of freezing of the swamplands is 82 – 87 cm, with an average of 68 cm. The frozen layer at swamplands thaws out from both its upper and bottom sides. The melting of the frozen layer at hummocks occurs only from the bog surface with an average intensity of 0,51 cm/day.

scholarly journals Computational Geometry-Based Surface Reconstruction for Volume Estimation: A Case Study on Magnitude-Frequency Relations for a LiDAR-Derived Rockfall Inventory

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 157
Author(s):  
Paul-Mark DiFrancesco ◽  
David A. Bonneau ◽  
D. Jean Hutchinson
Keyword(s):  
Computational Geometry ◽  
Surface Reconstruction ◽  
Power Law ◽  
Point Cloud ◽  
Point Clouds ◽  
Volume Estimation ◽  
Estimation Methods ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Reconstruction Methods ◽  
3D Volume

Key to the quantification of rockfall hazard is an understanding of its magnitude-frequency behaviour. Remote sensing has allowed for the accurate observation of rockfall activity, with methods being developed for digitally assembling the monitored occurrences into a rockfall database. A prevalent challenge is the quantification of rockfall volume, whilst fully considering the 3D information stored in each of the extracted rockfall point clouds. Surface reconstruction is utilized to construct a 3D digital surface representation, allowing for an estimation of the volume of space that a point cloud occupies. Given various point cloud imperfections, it is difficult for methods to generate digital surface representations of rockfall with detailed geometry and correct topology. In this study, we tested four different computational geometry-based surface reconstruction methods on a database comprised of 3668 rockfalls. The database was derived from a 5-year LiDAR monitoring campaign of an active rock slope in interior British Columbia, Canada. Each method resulted in a different magnitude-frequency distribution of rockfall. The implications of 3D volume estimation were demonstrated utilizing surface mesh visualization, cumulative magnitude-frequency plots, power-law fitting, and projected annual frequencies of rockfall occurrence. The 3D volume estimation methods caused a notable shift in the magnitude-frequency relations, while the power-law scaling parameters remained relatively similar. We determined that the optimal 3D volume calculation approach is a hybrid methodology comprised of the Power Crust reconstruction and the Alpha Solid reconstruction. The Alpha Solid approach is to be used on small-scale point clouds, characterized with high curvatures relative to their sampling density, which challenge the Power Crust sampling assumptions.

The solar chromosphere and corona: Quiet Sun

1977 ◽  
Vol 25 (9) ◽  
pp. 893-894
Author(s):  
Carole Jordan
Keyword(s):  
Solar Chromosphere ◽  
Quiet Sun
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