Formation of Solar Magnetic Flux Tubes with Kilogauss Field Strength Induced by Convective Instability

Nagata, Shin'ichi; Tsuneta, Saku; Suematsu, Yoshinori; Ichimoto, Kiyoshi; Katsukawa, Yukio; Shimizu, Toshifumi; Yokoyama, Takaaki; Tarbell, Theodore D.; Lites, Bruce W.; Shine, Richard A.; Berger, Thomas E.; Title, Alan M.; Bellot Rubio, Luis R.; Orozco Suárez, David
Referencia bibliográfica

The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 677, Issue 2, pp. L145-L147.

Fecha de publicación:
4
2008
Número de autores
14
Número de autores del IAC
0
Número de citas
97
Número de citas referidas
82
Descripción
Convective instability has been a mechanism used to explain the formation of solar photospheric flux tubes with kG field strength. However, the turbulence of the Earth's atmosphere has prevented ground-based observers from examining the hypothesis with precise polarimetric measurement on the subarcsecond scale flux tubes. Here we discuss observational evidence of this scenario based on observations with the Solar Optical Telescope (SOT) aboard Hinode. The cooling of an equipartition field strength flux tube precedes a transient downflow reaching 6 km s-1 and the intensification of the field strength to 2 kG. These observations agree very well with the theoretical predictions.