Diurnal variation of the linear polarization across the Hβ Fraunhofer line of the terrestrial atmosphere,I

When spectra of the daytime sky are compared with those directly from the Sun, it is found that the depths of the Fraunhofer lines are reduced. This indicates the presence of an added light, the Ring effect. Most previous research on the Ring effect has been performed spectroscopically, with the notion that the added component is always unpolarized. Here we presented spectropolarimetric observations using the principle of the line depth method (compression between the line centre and its continuum) to investigate this effect. The general scattered light of the blue sky is polarized and as the additional component may or may not also be polarized, the filling-in effect should be detectable by performing spectropolarimetry, which indeed has been achieved. The observations have involved the use of high precision polarimetry with spectral resolution 2 Å at the H Fraunhofer spectral line. The data indicate a variation of the linear polarization in the H line centre as a function of the solar zenith angle. One possible advantage of the polarimetric technique is that the Ring effect detections can be made without recourse to solar measurements directly or indirectly using an attenuator. Finally, a model without knowledge of the filling-in mechanism, has yielded a good qualitative agreement with the observational behaviours and it can be taken as a first step to explain the variation of the linear polarization across the spectral line.     

Formation of a ‘magma ocean’ on the terrestrial planets due to the blanketing effect of an impact-induced atmosphere

We show that the surface of a planet growing by planetesimal impact is heated over the melting temperature of the surface materials due to the blanketing effect of an impact induced H₂O atmosphere with the present H₂O abundance of the Earth even when the accretion time is as long as 10⁸ years. Hence, a magma ocean covering the entire surface was formed on the Earth and Moon and other terrestrial planets during their formations.     

Connection between the appearance of γ-ray sources and Hα line impact linear polarization in the July 23, 2002 flare

Astronomy Letters - During our spectropolarimetric observations of the 2B/4.8X flare on July 23, 2002, with the Large Solar Vacuum Telescope (LSVT), we detected impact linear polarization in the...     

Observations of the Orion Nebula in Hα, [NII] and Hβ lines

Monochromatic photographs of the Orion Nebula taken through narrow bandpass interference filters (Δλ=10 Å) centred on Hα, Hβ and [NII] lines are presented. Ratio contours of Hα/[NII] and Hα/Hβ are derived. They enable a detailed study of the point-to-point variation in ionization structure and temperature throughout the nebula. Dust located within the ionized gas is studied from the Hα/Hβ ratio which varies from point to point over the nebula. Its strongest concentration, apart in the obvious ‘dark bay’, occurs in a shell surrounding the exciting stars, with about 2′ of diameter. Close to Θ¹ Ori the Hα/Hβ ratio, corrected for interstellar reddening, is about 3.0 in good agreement with the predicted value (Brocklehurst, 1971). To account for these measures, the following arguments are proposed:

1. Dust grains are completely or partially destroyed in region close to the exciting stars.
2. Radiation pressure and stellar wind push the remaining dust up to some equilibrium distance outwards. The consequence of this action is obviously the formation of a ‘dust mantle’ which is seen as a ring in projection.

     

Profiles of the Hα and Hβ lines in the spectra of B and Be stars in the diffuse stellar cluster h/χ Persei

High dispersion CCD spectra are used to study the profiles of the Hα and Hβ lines of 48 stars in early spectral classes in the young diffuse binary cluster h/χ Per. In addition, moderate resolution spectra of 15 B and Be stars were taken over the interval 4400–4960 Å. One or, possibly, two new Be stars are discovered. The major parameters of the Hα line are measured for the observed B and Be stars. The spectra over 4400–4960 Å are used to estimate T_eff, logg, and υsin i. No traces of emission are detected in the Hα line profiles for 28 of the stars and emission is observed in the Hα line for 20. During our observations an absorption profile of the Hα line was observed for some of the stars, such as Oo146, Oo566, Oo922, and Oo1268, although they have previously been identified as Be stars. A significant long-term variability of the Hα line is discovered for the Be stars Oo1161 and Oo2242. Oo2371 manifests a variability in its faint emission spectrum which is typical of close binary systems that include a Be star. __________ Translated from Astrofizika, Vol. 51, No. 2, pp. 305–319 (May 2008).     

Some comments on Suemoto's paper ‘an empirical,statistical model for the formation of the cores of chromospheric Fraunhofer lines’

We discuss a recent model for the solar chromosphere proposed by Suemoto (Solar Phys. 54, 3). We conclude that the model is incompatible with the basic constraints imposed by high resolution observations and by line formation theory, and that consequently the model does not adequately describe the solar chromosphere.Mitteilung aus dem Fraunhofer-Institut Nr. 159.     

Simultaneous measurements of the polarization in Hα and D3 prominence emissions

Simultaneous observations of the polarization of radiations H and D₃ have been performed in 1979 at Pic du Midi on 60 solar prominences (300 pairs of measurements). For the essential part of the sample, the degree of polarization p(D₃) does not depend strongly upon the intensity E(D₃); on the contrary p(H) decreases steeply when E(H) goes beyond the brightness which corresponds to (H) = 1 (Figure 4); the deviation of the polarization direction (H) does not show such a strong dependance upon E(H) (Figure 6). A crude estimate of the possible role of multiple scattering in an optically thick prominence is in general agreement with observational data but a detailed comparison will be possible only when a complete theory of the Hanle effect in non optically thin layers will be available.Therefore, H polarization measurements are presently useful mainly when (H) < 1 and, in connexion with D₃ measurements (Figure 8), they should make possible to determine the three components of the prominence magnetic vector. Prospects are given for the observation of other lines (H; 10 830 Å) which do not suffer heavy self-absorption effects and would be well-suited to this type of study.     

Hα and Hβ profile variations in the spectra of the star 55 Cyg

Profile variations in the H_α and H_β lines in the spectra of the star 55 Cyg are investigated from observations acquired in 2010 at the Cassegrain focus of the 2-m telescope at the Shamakhy Astrophysical Observatory after named N.Tusi (Azerbaijan). The spectral resolution is approximately 15000. The emission and absorption components of the Ha profile are found to disappear on some observational days, and one of the spectrograms exhibits an inverse P-Cyg profile of Hα. It is suggested that the observational evidence for the nonstationary atmosphere of 55 Cyg can be associated in part with nonspherical stellar wind.     

Complete determination of the magnetic field vector and of the electron density in 14 prominences from linear polarizaton measurements in the HeI D3 and Hα lines

The present paper is devoted to the interpretation of linear polarization data obtained in 14 quiescent prominences with the Pic-du-Midi coronagraph-polarimeter by J. L. Leroy, in the two lines Hei D₃ andH quasi-simultaneously. The linear polarization of the lines is due to scattering of the anisotropic photospheric radiation, modified by the Hanle effect due to the local magnetic field. The interpretation of the polarization data in the two lines is able to provide the 3 components of the magnetic field vector, and one extra parameter, namely the electron density, because the linear polarization of H is also sensitive to the depolarizing effect of collisions with the electrons and protons of the medium. Moreover, by using two lines with different optical thicknesses, namely Hei D₃, which is optically thin, and H, which is optically thick ( = 1), it is possible to solve the fundamental ambiguity, each line providing two field vector solutions that are symmetrical in direction with respect to the line of sight in the case of the optically thin line, and which have a different symmetry in the case of the optically thick line.It is then possible to determine without ambiguity the polarity of the prominence magnetic field with respect to that of the photospheric field: 12 prominences are found to be Inverse polarity prominences, whereas 2 prominences are found to be Normal polarity prominences. It must be noticed that in 12 of the 14 cases, the line-of-sight component of the magnetic field vector has a Normal polarity (to the extent that the notion of polarity of a vector component is meaningful; no polarity can be derived in the 2 remaining cases); this may explain the controversy between the results obtained with methods based on the Hanle effect with results obtained through the Zeeman effect. A dip of the magnetic field lines across the prominence has been assumed, to which the optically thick H line is sensitive, and the optically thin Hei D₃ line is insensitive.For the Inverse prominences, the average field strength is 7.5±1.2 G, the average angle,, between the field vector and the prominence long axis is 36° ± 15°, the average angle, , between the outgoing field lines and the solar surface at the prominence boundary is 29° ± 20°, and the average electron density is 2.1 × 10¹⁰ ± 0.7 × 10¹⁰ cm^–3. For the Normal prominences, the average field strength is 13.2±2.0 G, the average angle,, between the field vector and the prominence long axis is 53° ± 15°, the average angle, , between the outgoing field lines and the solar surface at the prominence boundary is 0° ± 20° (horizontal field), and the average electron density is 8.7 × 10⁹ ± 3.0 × 10⁹ cm^–3.     

OSO-8 observations of CaII H and K,MgII h and k,Lα and Lβ above a sunspot

Observations with the French (L.P.S.P.) experiment on board OSO-8 of a sunspot and nearby plage region are described. The behaviour of the emission cores of the Ca II H and K and Mg II h and k resonance lines is very similar and the correspondence in intensity between the four lines persists in all observed features. In contrast, the Lyman lines show little correlation with the other lines. Their emission regions appear broader in the spectroheliograms than the underlying sunspot structure and must not necessarily possess a counterpart in lower layers. From the central intensity of L above the umbra an electron density of 4.3 × 10¹⁰ cm^-3 n _e ^* 2.3 × 10¹¹ cm^-3 at 20 000 K is estimated.Mitteilungen aus dem Kiepenheuer-Institut Nr. 186.Stockholm Observatorium, S-13300 Saltsjöbaden, Sweden.Laboratoire de Physique Stellaire et Planétaire, CNRS, P.O. Box 10, F-91370 Verrières-le-Buisson, France.     

Comparison of the magnetic fields in active prominences measured from the He I D3 and Hα lines

We present the results of magnetic field measurements in three active prominences, July 24, 1981, July 24, 1999, and July 12, 2004, obtained from observations with the echelle spectrograph of the horizontal solar telescope at the Astronomical Observatory of the Taras Shevchenko Kiev National University. The magnetic fields were measured from the Zeeman splitting of the I ± V profiles in the He I D₃ and H?? lines in the atmosphere at heights from 3 to 14 Mm. Our measurements of the effective magnetic fields B _eff from the shift of the profile centroids have shown that the magnetic fields averaged over the entrance slit area were within the range from ?600 to +1500 G. The amplitude values of the local fields have been estimated from the splitting of the bisectors of the central parts of the line profiles at 0.9 of the peak intensity. The corresponding fields B _0.9 have turned out to be approximately twice B _eff and reached 4000 G in absolute value. Narrow (1?C2 Mm) height peaks at heights of 6?C11 Mm have been found in the height distributions of the magnetic field. We have found an interesting effect in two prominences-an anticorrelation between the magnetic field strengths measured from the D₃ and H?? lines.     

Current sheet model of a normal prominence in which the background magnetic lines show a ‘dip structure’

We propose a simple 2D current sheet model of a normal prominence, in which the lines of the background magnetic field have the dip structure which seems to be required for such an object to form and to be stably supported.     

Rapid changes in the fine structure of a coronal ‘bright point’ and a small coronal ‘active region’

A coronal bright point is resolved into a pattern of emission which, at any given time, consists of 2 or 3 miniature loops (each 2500 km in diameter and 12 000 km long). During the half-day lifetime of the bright point individual loops evolved on a time scale 6 min. A small ctive region seemed to evolve in this way, but the occasional blurring together of several loops made it difficult to follow individual changes.     

X-ray and Hα observations of a filament-disappearance flare: An empirical analysis of the magnetic field configuration

A flare event occurred which involved the disappearance of a filament near central meridian on 29 August 1973. The event was well observed in X-rays with the AS & E telescope on Skylab and in H at BBSO. It was a four-ribbon flare involving both new and old magnetic inversion lines which were roughly parallel. The H, X-ray, and magnetic field data are used to deduce the magnetic polarities of the H brightenings at the footpoints of the brightest X-ray loops. These magnetic structures and the preflare history of the region are then used to argue that the event involved a reconnection of magnetic field lines rather than a brightening in place of pre-existing loops. The simultaneity of the H brightening onsets in the four ribbons and the apparent lack of an eruption of the filament are consistent with this interpretation. These observations are compared to other studies of filament disappearances. The preflare structures and the alignment of the early X-ray flare loops with the H filament are consistent with the schematic picture of a filament presented first by Canfield et al. (1974).     

Spectral analysis of Hα, Hβ, and Hγ lines of a white-light flare (3B/X6.1) on October 27, 1991

We have analyzed time series of H, H, and H line profiles taken from a 3B/X6.1 flare which occurred on October 27, 1991 in active region NOAA 6891. Each set of the spectra was taken simultaneously for the first 10 min of the flare event with a low and non-uniform time resolution of 10–40 s. A total of 22 sets of H, H, and H were scanned by a PDS with absolute intensity calibration to derive the dynamics and energetics of material in the flare region. Our results are as follows: (1) The Balmer line emitting region is accelerated downward to about 50 km s^-1 for the first 50 s and then is decelerated to about 10 km s^-1 for the next 150 s. (2) The radial velocity peak precedes the Balmer line intensity peak by about 40 s. (3) The total energy radiated from these Balmer lines is estimated to be 4.9 × 10²⁹ erg.     

Observational constraints on a ‘hidden’, turbulent magnetic field of the Sun

A search for linear polarization due to the transverse Zeeman effect in quiet regions near the heliographic north pole has been carried out. The aim is to determine new constraints on the properties of the hidden or turbulent magnetic flux of the Sun. As more than 90% of the total flux seen in magnetograms has its source in kG fluxtubes with an average filling factor of less than 1%, the term hidden magnetic flux refers to the field in the remaining 99% of the photospheric volume, which remains undetected in ordinary magnetograms (at available levels of spatial resolution and sensitivity).Simultaneous recordings of the Stokes I, Q, and V profiles of the Fei 5250.22 and 5247.06 Å lines with 5 × 5 sec of arc spatial resolution have been made with the NSO McMath solar telescope. The analysis shows how the observed Stokes Q amplitudes, as well as the Q/V ratio in combination with the 5250/5247 Stokes V line ratio, provide constraints on the field strength and the angular distribution of the field vectors of the hidden magnetic flux. The field has to be tangled with opposite polarities mixed on a subarcsec scale, and the field vectors have to have large inclinations with respect to the vertical direction, with an angular distribution not far from being isotropic in the photosphere. Constraints on the strength of this tangled or turbulent magnetic field have been obtained by previous methods, which are reconsidered in view of their dependence on the assumed angular distribution. An upper limit of 100 G comes from determinations of magnetic line broadening, a lower limit of 10 G from observed Hanle-effect depolarization.In our observations the linear polarization has been recorded with a precision of 10^-4 with good spectral resolution. Further improvements are impeded by the lack of telescopes with large photon collecting areas and small instrumental polarization.     

The design,construction and performance of a large Hα and [Nii] interference filter for the SRC 48-inch Schmidt

The design, construction and performance of a 15-in. square mosaic interference filter is described. This is designed to improve the sensitivity of the SRC 48-in. Schmidt for the detection of gaseous nebulae in the light of H and [Nii] by approximately seven times. Its bandwidth with Kodak 098-04 emulsion is 105 Å but when combined with 103aE emulsion the effective bandwidth is around 80 Å.     

On the Hβ, [OIII] lines and continuum variability character in the nucleus of Seyfert galaxy NGC 1275

The radiation fluxes of the NGC 1275 galaxy central region are being observed on the 1.25-m telescope, using a scanning spectrophotometer with the entrance aperture 10″ in three Δλ=80 Å spectral regions: Hβ, 4959+5007 Å [OIII] and continuum. There were 35 nights of observations during 1982–1987. With the time resolution of half an hour 379 measurements were obtained in each spectral region. The analysis of these results shows:

1. The standard deviations of measurements in each spectral region 2–3 times exceed the errors of observations.
2. The radiation flux distribution resembles to normal one only for Hβ line.
3. Two-humps forms of continuum flux distribution curve is like that of radio emission in 8 mm and 2.6 cm wavelengths.
4. Various forms of fluxes distribution curves of Hβ and [OIII] lines permit us to suppose that the location of these lines emission regions near the sources of excitation are different.

     

Doppler Shifts of the Hα Line and the Ca ii 854.2 nm Line in a Quiet Region of the Sun Observed with the FISS/NST

The characteristics of Doppler shifts in a quiet region of the Sun are compared between the Hα line and the Ca?ii infrared line at 854.2 nm. A small area of 16″×40″ was observed for about half an hour with the Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph (FISS) of the 1.6 meter New Solar Telescope (NST) at Big Bear Solar Observatory. The observed area contains a network region and an internetwork region, and identified in the network region are fibrils and bright points. We infer Doppler velocity v _m from each line profile at each individual point with the lambdameter method as a function of half wavelength separation Δλ. It is confirmed that the bisector of the spatially averaged Ca?ii line profile has an inverse C-shape with a significant peak redshift of +?1.8 km?s^?1. In contrast, the bisector of the spatially averaged Hα line profile has a C-shape with a small peak blueshift of ??0.5 km?s^?1. In both lines, the bisectors of bright network points are significantly redshifted not only at the line centers, but also at the wings. The Ca?ii Doppler shifts are found to be correlated with the Hα ones with the strongest correlation occurring in the internetwork region. Moreover, we find that here the Doppler shifts in the two lines are essentially in phase. We discuss the physical implications of our results in view of the formation of the Hα line and Ca?ii 854.2 nm line in the quiet region chromosphere.