The heating of the solar transition region

The temperature curve in the solar chromosphere has puzzled astronomers for a long time.Referring to the structure of supergranular cells,we propose an in ductive heating model.It mainly includes the following three steps.(1) A small-scale dynamo exists in the supergranulation and produces alternating small-scale magnetic fluxes;(2) The supergranular flow distributes these small-scale fluxes according to a regular pattern;(3) A skin effect occurs in the alternating and regularly-distributed magnetic fields.The induced current is concentrated near the transition region and heats it by resistive dissipation.     

Heat flux as a source of ion-acoustic oscillations in the transition region of the solar atmosphere

Based on model calculations, we show that ion-acoustic oscillations can be excited by heat fluxes in a plasma. We discuss the probable effect of ion-acoustic oscillations on the formation of temperature gradients at critical heat fluxes. The local critical heat flux in the transition region of the solar atmosphere is close to the well-known experimental heat flux from the corona into the chromosphere.     

Influence of the anomalous thermal conductivity on the structure of the solar atmosphere transition region

The generalized Wiedemann-Franz law for a nonisothermal quasi-neutral plasma with developed ion-acoustic turbulence and Coulomb collisions has been proven. The results obtained are used to explain the anomalously low thermal conductivity in the chromosphere-corona transition region of the solar atmosphere. Model temperature distributions in the lower corona and the transition region that correspond to well-known experimental data have been determined. The results obtained are useful for explaining the abrupt change in turbulent-plasma temperature at distances smaller than the particle mean free path.     

Dynamics of the transition region

In this review, we consider the problem of the apparent redshifts of the UV lines in the transition region and review the basic observations made over the last decades, especially the observations of the last few years from satellite observatories. Moreover, we revise the most popular theoretical explanations for the motions in the transition region. This review is a contribution to the understanding of the physical processes in this important layer of the solar atmosphere and it points out the pending problems.     

The anomalous intensities of helium lines in the quiet solar transition region

Previous studies using observations made at low spatial and spectral resolution showed that the resonance lines of He  i and He  ii are anomalously strong in the quiet Sun when compared with other transition region lines formed at similar temperatures. Here, the higher spatial and spectral resolution provided by the Coronal Diagnostic Spectrometer ( cds ) instrument on board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory ( SOHO ) is used to re-examine the behaviour of the He  i and He  ii lines and other transition region lines, in quiet regions near Sun centre. Supergranulation cell boundaries and cell interiors are examined separately. Near-simultaneous observations with the sumer instrument provide information on the lower transition region and the electron pressure. While the lines of He  i and He  ii have a common behaviour, as do the other transition region lines, the behaviour of the helium lines relative to the other transition region lines is significantly different. The emission measure distributions that account for all transition region lines, except those of helium, fail to produce sufficient emission in the He  i and He  ii resonance lines by around an order of magnitude, in both supergranulation cell boundary and cell interior regions. The electron pressure appears to be higher in the cell interiors than in the average cell boundaries, although the uncertainties are large. While the VAL-D model gives a closer match to the He  i 584.3-Å line, it does not successfully reproduce other transition region lines.     

On transition region convection cells in simulations of p‐mode propagation into the solar atmosphere

This paper examines the way that transition region surface waves, generated in 2‐D numerical simulations of the nonmagnetic solar atmosphere when various synthetic photospheric drivers are applied, drive the granulation of the transition region/lower coronal region into convection cells. It is shown that these cells are generated by both synthetic point drivers and synthetic horizontally coherent p‐mode drivers. These cells cause the conversion of driven signals in vertical velocity into coronal signals predominantly in horizontal velocity, which if carried over to a case with a magnetic field included could cause mode conversion. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

A model for the tail region of the heliospheric interface

The physical processes in the tail of the region where the solar wind interacts with a partially ionized local interstellar medium are investigated in terms of a self-consistent kinetic-gas-dynamical model. Resonant charge exchange between hydrogen atoms and plasma protons is shown to cause the contact discontinuity to disappear far from the Sun. The solar wind plasma cools down and, as a result, the parameters of the plasma and hydrogen atoms approach the corresponding parameters of the unperturbed interstellar medium at large heliocentric distances.     

A synthesized method for determining the azimuth of solar transverse magnetic field

The analyses have been made with the emphasis on four existing criteria for calibrating the azimuth of the photospheric transverse magnetic field measured with a heliomagnetograph. The results indicate that the potential criterion, Krall's criterion, i.e. B_t · B_z < 0 and Wu-Ai's criterion, i.e.

Full-size image (1K)

, are applicable to different cases, and the criterion based on the assumption about azimuth continuity of the transverse field is unreliable for the magnetograms with discrete data. On the basis of these analyses, a synthesized method for determining the azimuth of the transverse magnetic field on solar photosphere has been suggested in this paper. The main points of the method are as follows:

The transverse magnetic field observed with a heliomagnetograph could be calibrated, respectively, by means of potential criterion and Krall's criterion, and two different results could be obtained. By comparing the both results with one another, we can find that the azimuth distributions of transverse field are the same in some areas, which are named as areas with certain transverse field (CA), and different in other areas, which are named as areas with uncertain transverse field(UA). In order to determine the transverse field in UA, we introduce an assumption that the values of (the factor of force-free magnetic field) at neighbouring points are close. According to this assumption, the distribution of in UA could be determined through extrapolating from the CA, and hence the azimuth distribution of the transverse field in UA could be determined as well.

An observational example shown in this paper preliminarily demonstrates the availability of the synthesized method.     

Search for nonpotential features in the magnetic field of the solar active region SD 135 on 1984 June 4

Wir untersuchten die Struktur des Magnetfeldes in der relativ kleinen und einfachen solaren aktiven Region SD 135/1984 in der frühen, relativ ruhigen Phase am 24. Juni. Für diese Arbeit nutzten wir die Daten des Vektormagnetografen des SibIZMIR und Resultate von Modellrechnungen in der stromfreien Näherung. Wir haben das gemessene Magnetfeld mit dem Transversal-Feld der Modellrechnung verglichen. Wir konnten keinen signifikanten Nonpotential-Effekt größer als im Niveau der Sensitivität des Transversal-Magnetfeldes B_T 200 G finden. Wir schluß-folgern daher, daß die globale Magnetfeldstruktur in der untersuchten solaren aktiven Region nahezu eine Potentialstruktur besaß. Die Effekte der Entwicklung der aktiven Region auf die Magnetfeldstruktur scheinen vernachlässigbar zu sein.     

HST observation of the atmospheric composition of Jupiter’s equatorial region: evidence for tropospheric C2H2☆

This paper presents the first detailed analysis of acetylene absorption features observed longward of 190.0 nm in a jovian spectrum by the Faint Object Spectrograph on board the Hubble Space Telescope. The presence of two features located near 207.0 nm can only be explained by a substantial abundance of acetylene in the upper troposphere. Using a Rayleigh-Raman radiative transfer model, it was determined that the acetylene vertical profile is characterized by a decrease in the mole fraction with increasing pressure in the upper stratosphere, a minimum around 14 to 29 mbar, followed by an increase to about 1.5 × 10⁻⁷ in the upper troposphere. Longward of 220 nm, the relatively high contrast of Raman features to the continuum precludes the existence of an optically significant amount of clouds from 150 to 500 mbar unless they are highly reflective. Instead, the reflectivity at these long wavelengths is determined by stratospheric, not tropospheric, scatterers and absorbers. Analysis of the data also suggests that ammonia is extremely undersaturated at pressures below 700 mbar. However, no firm conclusions can be reached because of the uncertainties surrounding its cross section longward of 217.0 nm, which are due to vibrationally excited states.     

Mechanical modeling of thrust faults in the Thaumasia region, Mars, and implications for the Noachian heat flux

Insight into the state of the early martian lithosphere is gained by modeling the topography above surface breaking thrust faults in the southern Thaumasia region. Crater counts of key surface units associated with the faulting indicate a scarp emplacement in the late Noachian-early Hesperian periods between 4.0 and 3.7 Gyr. The seismogenic layer thickness at the time of faulting is constrained to 27-35 km and 21-28 km for the two scarps investigated, implying paleo geothermal gradients of 12-18 and 15-23 K km⁻¹, corresponding to heat flows of 24-36 and 30-46 mW m⁻². The heat flow values obtained in this study are considerably lower than those derived from rift flank uplift at the close-by Coracis Fossae for a similar time period, indicating that surface heat flow is a strong function of regional setting. If viewed as representative for magmatically active and inactive regions, the thermal gradients at rifts and scarps span the range of admissible global mean values. This implies , with the true value probably being closer to the lower bound.     

Possible evidence for the existence of an H II region around the neutron star in LSI+65°010

Our spectroscopic observation of the Be/X-ray binary LSI+65°010 showed a dramatic variation in November 1992 with an increase by a factor of more than 3 in the equivalent width of the H_α emission line. This supports the view that the primary is a Be star rather than a supergiant. A well-defined double-peaked profile in seen in the spectrum of September 1994: while the red peak remained at 6563 Å, the blue one was −7.2Å to the blue. We suggest that such a profile is caused by the superposition of two emission lines, one from the shell of the Be star, one from an H II region around the neutron star. This provides, for the first time, direct observational evidence for the existence of a H II region around compact object and caused by X-ray emission. On 1992-11-04, the red side of the H_α line did not change while the blue side was greatly enhanced. We suggest that this may be caused by the H II region around the neutron star.