We have studied the corona as seen at the eclipses of 1878, 1900, 1901 and others. These eclipses occurred during extended sunspot minimum conditions. We compare these data with those of the recent solar minimum corona, using data from the eclipses of July 22 2009 and August 1 2008. An attempt to characterize the global solar magnetic fields is made. We speculate on the origin of the non-dipolar structure seen in the 2008 and 2009 eclipse images.
Context. There is no consensus on the amplitude of the historical solar forcing. The estimated magnitude of the total solar irradiance difference between Maunder minimum and present time ranges from 0.1 to 6 W/m2 making uncertain the simulation of the past and future climate. One reason for this disagreement is the applied evolution of the quiet Sun brightness in the solar irradiance reconstruction models. This work addresses the role of the quiet Sun model choice and updated solar magnetic activity proxies on the solar forcing reconstruction. Aims. We aim to establish a plausible range of the solar irradiance variability on decadal to millennial time scales. Methods. The spectral solar irradiance (SSI) is calculated as a weighted sum of the contributions from sunspot umbra/penumbra, fac- ulae and quiet Sun, which are pre-calculated with the spectral synthesis code NESSY. We introduce activity belts of the contributions from sunspots and faculae and a new structure model for the quietest state of the Sun. We assume that the brightness of the quiet Sun varies in time proportionally to the secular (22-year smoothed) variation of the solar modulation potential. Results. A new reconstruction of the TSI and SSI covering the period 6000 BCE - 2015 CE is presented. The model simulates solar irradiance variability during the satellite era well. The TSI change between the Maunder and recent minima ranges between 3.7 and 4.5 W/m2 depending on the applied solar modulation potential. The implementation of a new quietest Sun model reduces, by approximately a factor of two, the relative solar forcing compared to the largest previous estimation, while the application of updated solar modulation potential increases the forcing difference between Maunder minimum and the present by 25-40 %.
Coronal jets are transient, collimated eruptions that occur in regions of predominantly open magnetic field in the solar corona. Our understanding of these events has greatly evolved in recent years but several open questions, such as the contribution of coronal jets to the solar wind, remain. Here we present an overview of the observations and numerical modeling of coronal jets, followed by a brief description of next-generation simulations that include an advanced description of the energy transfer in the corona (thermodynamic MHD), large spherical computational domains, and the solar wind. These new models will allow us to address some of the open questions.
Magnetic loops filled with hot plasma are the main building blocks of the solar corona. Usually they have lengths of the order of the barometric scale height in the corona that is 50 Mm. Previously it has been suggested that miniatu
Context. An analysis of the oscillations above sunspots was carried out using simultaneous ground-based and Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) observations (SiI 10827A, HeI 10830A, FeI 6173A, 1700A, HeII 304A, FeIX 171A). Aims. Investigation of the spatial distribution of oscillation power in the frequency range 1-8 mHz for the different height levels of the solar atmosphere. Measuring the time lags between the oscillations at the different layers. Methods. We used frequency filtration of the intensity and Doppler velocity variations with Morlet wavelet to trace the wave propagation from the photosphere to the chromosphere and the corona. Results. The 15 min oscillations are concentrated near the outer penumbra in the upper photosphere (1700 A), forming a ring, that expands in the transition zone. These oscillations propagate upward and reach the corona level, where their spatial distribution resembles a fan structure. The spatial distribution of the 5 min oscillation power looks like a circle-shape structure matching the sunspot umbra border at the photospheric level. The circle expands at the higher levels (HeII 304A and FeIX 171A). This indicates that the low-frequency oscillations propagate along the inclined magnetic tubes in the spot. We found that the inclination of the tubes reaches 50--60 degrees in the upper chromosphere and the transition zone. The main oscillation power in the 5-8 mHz range concentrates within the umbra boundaries at all the levels. The highest frequency oscillations (8 mHz) are located in the peculiar points inside the umbra. These points probably coincide with umbral dots. We deduced the propagation velocities to be 28+-15 km/s, 26+-15 km/s, and 55+-10 km/s for the SiI 10827A-HeI 10830A, 1700A-HeII 304A, and HeII 304A-FeIX 171A height levels, respectively.
The quiet solar corona emits meter-wave thermal bremsstrahlung. Coronal radio emission can only propagate above that radius, $R_omega$, where the local plasma frequency eqals the observing frequency. The radio interferometer LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) observes in its low band (10 -- 90 MHz) solar radio emission originating from the middle and upper corona. We present the first solar aperture synthesis imaging observations in the low band of LOFAR in 12 frequencies each separated by 5 MHz. From each of these radio maps we infer $R_omega$, and a scale height temperature, $T$. These results can be combined into coronal density and temperature profiles. We derived radial intensity profiles from the radio images. We focus on polar directions with simpler, radial magnetic field structure. Intensity profiles were modeled by ray-tracing simulations, following wave paths through the refractive solar corona, and including free-free emission and absorption. We fitted model profiles to observations with $R_omega$ and $T$ as fitting parameters. In the low corona, $R_omega < 1.5$ solar radii, we find high scale height temperatures up to 2.2e6 K, much more than the brightness temperatures usually found there. But if all $R_omega$ values are combined into a density profile, this profile can be fitted by a hydrostatic model with the same temperature, thereby confirming this with two independent methods. The density profile deviates from the hydrostatic model above 1.5 solar radii, indicating the transition into the solar wind. These results demonstrate what information can be gleaned from solar low-frequency radio images. The scale height temperatures we find are not only higher than brightness temperatures, but also than temperatures derived from coronograph or EUV data. Future observations will provide continuous frequency coverage, eliminating the need for local hydrostatic density models.