arXivDaily arXiv每日学术速递 周一至周五更新
arXiv 1302.5403astro-ph.SR
收藏

极冕洞中阿尔文波耗散能量的观测量化:波驱动快速太阳风的证据

Observational Quantification of the Energy Dissipated by Alfvén Waves in a Polar Coronal Hole: Evidence that Waves Drive the Fast Solar Wind

Michael Hahn, Daniel W. Savin

摘要:

我们提出了一个测量的能量携带和消散的阿尔文波在极冕洞。阿尔文波被认为是加热日冕并驱动太阳风的能源。先前的工作表明,在冕洞中,线宽随着高度的增加而减小,这是波阻尼的特征,但无法量化波损失的能量。这是因为线宽取决于非热速度v_nt和离子温度T_i两者。我们已经实现了一种方法来分离的T_i和v_nt的贡献使用的观察,在低高度的波是无阻尼和离子温度不随高度变化。这使我们能够确定在低高度处波浪携带的能量,该能量与v_nt成比例。我们发现,在2007 - 2009年的太阳活动极小期,存在的初始能流密度为6.7 +/- 0.7 x 10^5 erg cm^-2 s^-1,这足以加热冕洞并加速太阳风。此外,我们发现,大约85%的这种能量耗散低于1.5 R_太阳,足够低的热传导可以传输整个冕洞的能量,加热它和驱动快速的太阳风。剩余的能量与模型显示的为快速太阳风提供音速点以上的扩展加热所需的能量大致一致。我们还研究了T_i,发现T_i随离子种类的不同而在1 - 2 MK的范围内。

英文摘要:

We present a measurement of the energy carried and dissipated by Alfvén waves in a polar coronal hole. Alfvén waves have been proposed as the energy source that heats the corona and drives the solar wind. Previous work has shown that line widths decrease with height in coronal holes, which is a signature of wave damping, but have been unable to quantify the energy lost by the waves. This is because line widths depend on both the non-thermal velocity v_nt and the ion temperature T_i. We have implemented a means to separate the T_i and v_nt contributions using the observation that at low heights the waves are undamped and the ion temperatures do not change with height. This enables us to determine the amount of energy carried by the waves at low heights, which is proportional to v_nt. We find the initial energy flux density present was 6.7 +/- 0.7 x 10^5 erg cm^-2 s^-1, which is sufficient to heat the coronal hole and acccelerate the solar wind during the 2007 - 2009 solar minimum. Additionally, we find that about 85% of this energy is dissipated below 1.5 R_sun, sufficiently low that thermal conduction can transport the energy throughout the coronal hole, heating it and driving the fast solar wind. The remaining energy is roughly consistent with what models show is needed to provide the extended heating above the sonic point for the fast solar wind. We have also studied T_i, which we found to be in the range of 1 - 2 MK, depending on the ion species.

机构、总结、中文摘要均由AI分析而来,可能存在错误,请以论文正文为准。

↑