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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 163 records · Page 9
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1980

Cylindrical prominences and the magnetic influence of the photospheric boundary

The paper constructs exact, nonlinear solutions for a horizontal, cylindrical, current-carrying prominence supported against solar gravity by the Lorentz force. The solutions incorporate the photosphere boundary condition, proposed by van Tend and Kuperus (1978), who analyzed it for line filaments. The solutions have a finite radius for the prominence material and satisfy the equations of magnetostatic equilibrium, and allow for the continuity of gas pressure and of the normal and tangential components of magnetic field across the circular prominence boundary. It is shown that an infinity of solutions is possible; a method is presented for constructing equilibrium fields for any horizontal prominence with arbitrary cross-section and with an arbitrary external magnetic field.

Lerche, I.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Dynamics of the solar photosphere

Current knowledge of photospheric velocity fields is summarized. A model of the solar atmosphere is described along with the methods used in solar velocity field observations. The inferences drawn from integrated Sun observations, the velocity fields of the quiet Sun, sunspots, and other magnetic structures are discussed.

Beckers, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Chromospheric and photospheric evolution of an extremely active solar region in solar cycle 19

a comprehensive investigation was made of phenomena attending the disk passage, July 7 to 21, 1959, of active solar center HAO-59Q. At the photospheric level that comprised an aggregate of groups of sunspots of which one group, Mt. Wilson 14284, showed all the attributes deemed typical of solar regions associated with the production of major flares. A special characteristic of 59Q was its capability to eject dark material. Part of this material remained trapped in the strong magnetic fields above group 14284 where it formed a system of interrelated arches, the legs of which passed through components of the bright chromospheric network of the plage and were rooted in various underlying umbrae. Two apparently diffeent kinds of flare were identified in 59Q; namely, prominence flares (which comprised brightenings within part of the suspended dark prominence) and plage flares (which comprised brightenings within part of the chromospheric network). Prominence flares were of three varieties described as 'impact', 'stationary' and 'moving' prominence flares. Plage flares were accompanied in 3 percent of cases by Type III bursts. These latter radio events indicate the associated passage through the corona of energetic electrons in the approximate energy range 10 to 100 keV. At least 87.5 percent, and probably all, impulsive brightenings in 59Q began directly above minor spots, many of which satellites to major umbrae. Stationary and moving prominence flares were individually triggered at sites beneath which magnetic changes occurred within intervals which included each flare's flash phase.

Mckenna-Lawlor, S. M. P.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Photospheric subrotations, differential rotation and zonal wind bands - A reverse pirouette

It is noted that on the sun the core is assumed to be rotating with a period of about 12 days while the overlying 'mantle' convection zone has a solid body component of about 27 days. It is proposed that this phenomenon could simply be understood as a 'reverse pirouette'. It is noted that while previously proposed models provide solutions of valid equations and computer analyses, they lack a simple physical picture to explain the phenomenon. In the model proposed here, the solar oblateness is conventionally providing added heat input at the poles. The result is the large scale transport of material toward the equator, causing subrotation. The model is thus seen as facilitating an understanding of the formation of a slowly rotating convection zone above the more rapidly rotating core. The latitudinal photospheric differential rotation is interpreted as a 'second order' effect associated with the horizontal transport of momentum.

Schatten, K. H.↗
NASA NTRS1981

The stability of solar coronal loops with realistic photospheric boundary conditions

Finite-length effects are the primary influence for the MHD stability of coronal loops. This paper gives a new physical description of the photospheric boundary conditions, and the first complete and uniformly convergent initial-perturbation set. A general energy-principle (or variational) stability analysis is then developed. The results of this calculation show that large classes of cylindrical-symmetry perturbations, those with separable contributions to the energy integral, are completely stable. Comparisons are also made with other more restrictive formulations of this problem.

Van Hoven, G.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Active regions from the photosphere to the chromosphere

The structures and physical conditions in that portion of a solar active region extending from the photosphere to the corona are considered. A horizontally averaged model of a solar plage is developed which is in reasonable agreement with observations, and significant discrepancies existing between quiet sun models and UV and IR spectra are noted which cast doubt on the reliability of such models. The nature of the flux tubes comprising the small-scale structure of the active regions is discussed, and the concept of filling factor is described as a basis for a flux tube model explaining changes in spectral properties. The effects of two-dimensional radiative transfer are examined for flux tubes of various cross-sectional size, and it is found that the neglect of explicit horizontal radiative interactions is a good approximation to the two-dimensional treatment. The radiative power loss from active regions is discussed for homogeneous and flux tube models, and a significant difference in total heating requirements is found. Finally, attention is given to the characteristics of the transition zone.

Chapman, G. A.↗
NASA NTRS1982

The equatorial photospheric rotation rate

The equatorial photospheric rotation rate was observed on 14 days in 1978-1980. The resulting rate, 14.14 + or - 0.04 deg/day, is found to be 2% slower than the rate observed for long-lived sunspots. Tables giving sidereal equatorial rotation rates measured with the line 10905 A Cr I and 6315 A Ni I are included.

Duvall, T. L., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1981

The spontaneous concentration of magnetic field in the photosphere of the sun

The basic physics of magnetic flux tubes in the solar photosphere is reviewed, with areas still open to conjecture pointed out. The question of the concentration of individual small flux tubes to levels of 1-2 kilogauss, when the average solar surface magnetic field is on the order of 10 gauss, by processes of twisting and the formation of flux ropes made up of tubes wound around each other is considered together with the effects of turbulence on the flux tube. Mechanisms for tube compression by the evacuation of the gas contained within a flux tube are then examined, and the possibility of field concentration through the cooling of the gas within the tube in a superadiabatic process is suggested. Attention is then given to possible mechanisms serving to maintain the concentration of flux tubes far below the surface of the sun which gives rise to sunspots and pores as the flux tree emerges through the surface.

Parker, E. N.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Vector magnetic field evolution, energy storage, and associated photospheric velocity shear within a flare-productive active region

Sheared photospheric velocity fields inferred from spot motions for April 5-7, 1980, are compared with both transverse magnetic field orientation changes and with the region's flare history. Rapid spot motions and high inferred velocity shear coincide with increased field alignment along the longitudinal neutral line and with increased flare activity, while a later decrease in velocity shear precedes a more relaxed magnetic configuration and decrease in flare activity. It is estimated that magnetic reconfiguration produced by the relative velocities of the spots could cause storage of about 10 to the 32nd erg/day, while flares occurring during this time expended no more than about 10 to the 31st erg/day.

Krall, K. R.↗
NASA NTRS1982

The photospheric velocity field of Procyon

Balloon-borne Ultraviolet Stellar Spectrometer observations of the profiles of two well observed spectral lines in the ultraviolet spectrum of Alpha CMI (Procyon; F5IV-V) are analyzed with a Fourier transform method in order to determine values of various parameters of the velocity field of the upper photosphere. A microturbulent line-of-sight velocity component of 0.9 + or - 0.4 km/s, a macroturbulent velocity component of 5.3 + or - 0.2 km/s, and a rotational velocity component of 10.0 + or - 1.2 km/s were determined. In these calculations a single-moded sinusoidal isotropic macroturbulent velocity function was assumed. The result appears to be sensitive to the assumed shape of the macroturbulence function.

De Jager, C.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Hydromagnetic stability of coronal arcade structures The effects of photospheric line tying

A model is given of the magnetic-field equilibrium and possible dynamic excitations of a solar coronal arcade. Such structures are well observed in the spectral range from H-alpha to X-rays and often give rise to two-ribbon flares. However, the preflare state must be stable to ideal magnetohydrodynamic disturbances, and this problem is treated with particular attention to the necessary foot-point boundary conditions. With reasonably general perturbation set, an energy-principle analysis is used to show the strong stabilizing influence of inertial field-line tying at the photosphere.

Ray, A.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Hot mantles, moderate photospheres for Wolf-Rayet stars

The amount of continuous energy from Wolf-Rayet stars and the shape of the continuous spectrum from the ultraviolet to the near infrared correspond to effective temperatures in the range 25,000 to 30,000 K. The value of log g is of the order of 4.0 + or - 0.5. Thus the photospheres of Wolf-Rayet stars correspond to those of moderately hot stars. The line spectra of Wolf-Rayet stars, however, indicate that electron temperatures greater than 30,000 K occur in the outer atmospheres or mantles of these stars. Here outflow is important.

Underhill, A. B.↗
NASA NTRS1982

The detection of ultraviolet photospheric absorption in the spectra of two Wolf-Rayet stars

Narrow, unshifted UV absorption lines, principally of Fe v, have been detected in the spectra of two Wolf-Rayet stars, HD 93162 (WN7) and HD 193793 (WC7). Both stars are known to show upper Balmer-line absorption but exhibit no periodic Doppler shifts that might indicate the presence of a companion. If intrinsic to the Wolf-Rayet stars, these lines presumably form near the base of the envelope in the photosphere. The potential significance of absorption-line studies of Wolf-Rayet stars is discussed.

Fitzpatrick, E. L.↗
NASA NTRS1983

On possible correlations in the photospheric magnetic field

A correlation analysis is performed upon the rate of change of the photospheric magnetic field in the north and south hemispheres of the sun. Both active region logs and data obtained from the daily Mount Wilson magnetograms are employed, and the analysis is performed for all available days, as well as for days in which active regions are near central meridian. The result of the analysis shows no correlation between these changes and it is concluded that local convective turbulence is more important than dynamo processes with regard to the appearance of individual active regions.

Wallenhorst, S. G.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Magnetic rotation of the solar photosphere

Magnetograms made at Mt. Wilson Observatory from January 1967 to May 1982 are crosscorrelated in 34 latitude strips at 1-4-day increments to determine the rotation of magnetic features in the solar photosphere. The data are smoothed by averaging corresponding correlations and calculating rotation from the displacement of the averaged-correlation maximum; the usefulness and validity of this procedure are discussed. No significant time variation or field dependence is found for the period of the observations, at least to the accuracy of the calculated means (variance of from about 2 m/sec at low latitudes to about 10 m/sec near the poles). The rotation function omega at solar latitude phi is shown to be 2.902 0.464 sin sq phi - 0.328 sin to the 4th phi microrad/sec, in agreement with the Mt. Wilson Doppler profile near the poles and with the sunspot determination of Newton and Nunn (1951) at sunspot latitudes, where the Doppler estimate is about 30 m/sec slower.

Snodgrass, H. B.↗
NASA NTRS1984

SMM observations of K-alpha radiation from fluorescence of photospheric iron by solar flare X-rays

High-resolution Fe K-alpha spectra near 1.94 A observed during solar flares with the Bent Crystal Spectrometer on the Solar Maximum Mission are presented. The evidence for two possible excitation mechanisms, electron impact and fluorescence, is examined. It is found that the fluorescence mechanism satisfactorily describes the results, while the observations do not support electron collisional excitation of the Fe K-alpha transitions in low ionization stages (II-XII) of iron. Using Bai's model of the fluorescent excitation process, the photospheric iron abundance relative to that of hydrogen is estimated to be 5-6 x 10 to the -5th. The mean height of the soft X-ray source producing the K-alpha fluorescence is calculated on the basis of this model for about 40 large flares. The solar K-alpha lines are found to be about 25 percent wider than those measured in the laboratory. Weak line features observed at wavelengths shorter than that of the K-alpha lines are discussed.

Parmar, A. N.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Contribution functions for Zeeman-split lines, and line formation in photospheric faculae

The transfer of polarized light in an inhomogeneous stellar atmosphere, and the formation of magnetically sensitive spectral lines, are discussed. A new method for the solution of the transfer equations is proposed. The method gives a natural definition of the contribution functions for Stokes' parameters, i.e., functions describing the contributions from different parts along the line-of-sight (LOS). The formalism includes all magneto-optical effects, and allows for an arbitrary variation of magnetic field, velocity field, temperature, density, etc., along the LOS. The formation of FeI lambda 5250.2 in photospheric faculae is described. A potential-field model of a facular element is presented, and spectra profiles and contribution functions are computed for the Stokes parameters I, Q, and V.

Vanballegooijen, A. A.↗