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Register a new userKink instability of triangular jets in the solar atmosphere
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Added by
Teimuraz Zaqarashvili
Publication date
2021
fields
Physics
and research's language is
English
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It is known that hydrodynamic triangular jets are unstable to antisymmetric kink perturbations. The inclusion of magnetic field may lead to the stabilisation of the jets. Jets and complex magnetic fields are ubiquitous in the solar atmosphere, which suggests the possibility of the kink instability in certain cases. The aim of the paper is to study the kink instability of triangular jets sandwiched between magnetic tubes/slabs and its possible connection to observed properties of the jets in the solar atmosphere. A dispersion equation governing the kink perturbations is obtained through matching of analytical solutions at the jet boundaries. The equation is solved analytically and numerically for different parameters of jets and surrounding plasma. The analytical solution is accompanied by a numerical simulation of fully nonlinear MHD equations for a particular situation of solar type II spicules. MHD triangular jets are unstable to the dynamic kink instability depending on the Alfven Mach number (the ratio of flow to Alfven speeds) and the ratio of internal and external densities. When the jet has the same density as the surrounding plasma, then only super Alfvenic flows are unstable. However, denser jets are unstable also in sub Alfvenic regime. Jets with an angle to the ambient magnetic field have much lower thresholds of instability than field-aligned flows. Growth times of the kink instability are estimated as 6-15 min for type I spicules and 5-60 s for type II spicules matching with their observed life times. Numerical simulation of full nonlinear equations shows that the transverse kink pulse locally destroys the jet in less than a minute in the conditions of type II spicules. Dynamic kink instability may lead to full breakdown of MHD flows and consequently to observed disappearance of spicules in the solar atmosphere.
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Observations show various jets in the solar atmosphere with significant rotational motions, which may undergo instabilities leading to heat ambient plasma. We study the Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability of twisted and rotating jets caused by the velocity jumps near the jet surface. We derive a dispersion equation with appropriate boundary condition for total pressure (including centrifugal force of tube rotation), which governs the dynamics of incompressible jets. Then, we obtain analytical instability criteria of Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in various cases, which were verified by numerical solutions to the dispersion equation. We find that twisted and rotating jets are unstable to KH instability when the kinetic energy of rotation is more than the magnetic energy of the twist. Our analysis shows that the azimuthal magnetic field of 1-5 G can stabilize observed rotations in spicule/macrospicules and X-ray/EUV jets. On the other hand, non-twisted jets are always unstable to KH instability. In this case, the instability growth time is several seconds for spicule/macrospicules and few minutes (or less) for EUV/X-ray jets. We also find that standing kink and torsional Alfven waves are always unstable near the antinodes due to the jump of azimuthal velocity at the surface, while the propagating waves are generally stable. KH vortices may lead to enhanced turbulence development and heating of surrounding plasma, therefore rotating jets may provide energy for chromospheric and coronal heating.
Hydrodynamic jets are unstable to the kink instability (m=1 mode in cylindrical geometry) owing to the centripetal force, which increases the transverse displacement of the jet. When the jet moves along a magnetic field, then the Lorentz force tries to decrease the displacement and stabilises the instability of sub-Alfvenic flows. The threshold of the instability depends on the Alfven Mach number (the ratio of Alfven and jet speeds). We suggest that the dynamic kink instability may be of importance to explain observed transverse motions of type II spicules in the solar atmosphere. We show that the instability may start for spicules which rise up at the peripheries of vertically expanding magnetic flux tubes owing to the decrease of the Alfven speed in both, the vertical and the radial directions. Therefore, inclined spicules may be more unstable and have more higher transverse speeds. Periods and growth times of unstable modes in the conditions of type II spicules have the values of 30 s and 25-100 s, respectively, which are comparable to the life time of the structures. This may indicate to the interconnection between high speed flow and rapid disappearance of type II spicules in chromospheric spectral lines.
Using numerical simulations, we study the effects of thermal conduction and radiative cooling on the formation and evolution of solar jets with some macrospicules features. We initially assume that the solar atmosphere is rarely in equilibrium through energy imbalance. Therefore, we test whether the background flows resulting from an imbalance between thermal conduction and radiative cooling influence the jets behavior. In this particular scenario, we trigger the formation of the jets by launching a vertical velocity pulse localized at the upper chromosphere for the following test cases: i) adiabatic case; ii) thermal conduction case; iii) radiative cooling case; iv) thermal conduction + radiative cooling case. According to the test results, the addition of the thermal conduction results in smaller and hotter jets than in the adiabatic case. On the other hand, the radiative cooling dissipates the jet after reaching the maximum height ($approx$ 5.5 Mm), making it shorter and colder than in the adiabatic and thermal conduction cases. Besides, the flow generated by the radiative cooling is more substantial than the caused by thermal conduction. Despite the energy imbalance of the solar atmosphere background, the simulated jet shows morphological features of macrospicules. Furthermore, the velocity pulse steepens into a shock that propagates upward into a solar corona that maintains its initial temperature. The shocks generate the jets with a quasi-periodical behavior that follows a parabolic path on time-distance plots consistent with macrospicule jets observed dynamics.
Using data obtained by the high resolution CRisp Imaging SpectroPolarimeter instrument on the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope, we investigate the dynamics and stability of quiet-Sun chromospheric jets observed at disk center. Small-scale features, such as Rapid Redshifted and Blueshifted Excursions, appearing as high speed jets in the wings of the H$alpha$ line, are characterized by short lifetimes and rapid fading without any descending behavior. To study the theoretical aspects of their stability without considering their formation mechanism, we model chromospheric jets as twisted magnetic flux tubes moving along their axis, and use the ideal linear incompressible magnetohydrodynamic approximation to derive the governing dispersion equation. Analytical solutions of the dispersion equation indicate that this type of jet is unstable to Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (KHI), with a very short (few seconds) instability growth time at high upflow speeds. The generated vortices and unresolved turbulent flows associated with the KHI could be observed as broadening of chromospheric spectral lines. Analysis of the H$alpha$ line profiles shows that the detected structures have enhanced line widths with respect to the background. We also investigate the stability of a larger scale H$alpha$ jet that was ejected along the line-of-sight. Vortex-like features, rapidly developing around the jets boundary, are considered as evidence of the KHI. The analysis of the energy equation in the partially ionized plasma shows that the ion-neutral collisions may lead to the fast heating of the KH vortices over timescales comparable to the lifetime of chromospheric jets.
The structure and dynamics of the outer solar atmosphere are reviewed with emphasis on the role played by the magnetic field. Contemporary observations that focus on high resolution imaging over a range of temperatures, as well as UV, EUV and hard X-ray spectroscopy, demonstrate the presence of a vast range of temporal and spatial scales, mass motions, and particle energies present. By focussing on recent developments in the chromosphere, corona and solar wind, it is shown that small scale processes, in particular magnetic reconnection, play a central role in determining the large-scale structure and properties of all regions. This coupling of scales is central to understanding the atmosphere, yet poses formidable challenges for theoretical models.
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