| Abstract: | Upcoming large solar telescopes will offer the possibility of unprecedented high resolution observations. However, during periods of non‐ideal seeing such measurements are impossible and alternative programs should be considered to best use the available observing time. We present a synoptic program, currently carried out at the Istituto Ricerche Solari Locarno (IRSOL), to monitor turbulent magnetic fields employing the differential Hanle effect in atomic and molecular lines. This program can be easily adapted for the use at large telescopes exploring new science goals, nowadays impossible to achieve with smaller telescopes. The current, interesting scientific results prove that such programs are worthwhile to be continued and expanded in the future. We calculate the approximately achievable spatial resolution at a large telescope like ATST for polarimetric measurements with a noise level below 5 × 10‐5 and a temporal resolution which is sufficient to explore variations on the granular scale. We show that it would be important to optimize the system for maximal photon throughput and to install a high‐speed camera system to be able to study turbulent magnetic fields with unprecedented accuracy (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) |
