On the prevalence of small-scale twist in the solar chromosphere and transition region
Date
2014-10Author
De Pontieu, Bart
Rouppe van der Voort, L.
McIntosh, Scott W.
Pereira, Tiago M. D.
Carlsson, Mats
Hansteen, Viggo H.
Skogsrud, H.
Lemen, James
Title, Alan M.
Boerner, P.
Hurlburt, Neal E.
Tarbell, Ted D.
Wuelser, Jean-Pierre
DeLuca, E.E.
Golub, Leon
McKillop, Sean
Reeves, Kathy K.
Saar, Steven
Testa, Paola
Tian, Hui
Kankelborg, Charles
Jaeggli, Sarah
Kleint, Lucia
Martinez-Sykora, J.
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The solar chromosphere and transition region (TR) form an interface between the Sun’s surface and its hot outer atmosphere. There, most of the nonthermal energy that powers the solar atmosphere is transformed into heat, although the detailed mechanism remains elusive. High-resolution (0.33–arc second) observations with NASA’s Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) reveal a chromosphere and TR that are replete with twist or torsional motions on sub–arc second scales, occurring in active regions, quiet Sun regions, and coronal holes alike. We coordinated observations with the Swedish 1-meter Solar Telescope (SST) to quantify these twisting motions and their association with rapid heating to at least TR temperatures. This view of the interface region provides insight into what heats the low solar atmosphere.
Citation
De Pontieu, B., L. Rouppe van der Voort, S. W. McIntosh, T. M. D. Pereira, M. Carlsson, V. Hansteen, H. Skogsrud, et al. "On the Prevalence of Small-Scale Twist in the Solar Chromosphere and Transition Region." Science 346, no. 6207 (October 16, 2014): 1255732–1255732. doi:10.1126/science.1255732.