Sun's magnetic field mapped in 3D for first time
What's the story
For the first time, scientists have mapped the Sun's outer magnetic field in three dimensions (3D). The groundbreaking study was published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters on Wednesday. It uses existing telescope observations and a novel technique to estimate the strength and direction of this magnetic field in the Sun's outer atmosphere, or corona.
Solar influence
Importance of the Sun's corona
The Sun's corona is a hot plasma region that plays a major role in solar activity. Its magnetic field drives solar eruptions, including coronal mass ejections (CMEs).
These events can hurl huge amounts of magnetized plasma into space, potentially triggering geomagnetic storms on Earth.
Such storms can disrupt satellites, navigation systems, radio communications, and power infrastructure.
Research collaboration
About the study and research team
The study was led by Alin Paraschiv from the US National Science Foundation's National Solar Observatory. It also involved contributions from researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and Southwest Research Institute.
The team combined observations from two instruments, Coronal Multi-channel Polarimeter (CoMP) and its upgraded version, UCoMP, to create 3D estimates of the magnetic field over regions observed by Mauna Loa Solar Observatory in Hawaii.
Methodology
New technique to estimate magnetic fields
The research team used a mathematical technique called IQUD inversion to extract information from waves traveling through the corona.
This method enabled them to reconstruct both the strength and three-dimensional direction of the magnetic field without having to build a new telescope or instrument.
The initial maps produced by this method only cover regions accessible to CoMP and UCoMP.
Research advancement
Future of the technique and its potential impact
The new method is still under development and validation.
The research team has made its software and datasets publicly available for other scientists to test and improve the technique.
They hope this method will be integrated into routine solar observations in the future, marking a major step toward understanding the magnetic forces behind some of the Sun's most powerful eruptions.