DKIST's discovery of magnetic waves might finally provide an explanation for why the Sun's atmosphere burns at millions of degrees
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| The Sun's surprisingly high temperatures may finally be explained by magnetic waves in its atmosphere |
The reason behind the sun's outer atmosphere, or corona, has been a mystery to astronomers for years. The Sun's 5,500°C surface seems chilly during an eclipse, but the surrounding corona, which is far hotter, may reach millions of degrees. The surrounding corona, however, has a temperature of millions of degrees. Researchers now assert that they have solved this mystery. We now know more about these aspects of the Sun than ever before, thanks to the discovery of magnetic waves in its atmosphere that scientists think may be involved in this long-standing cosmic riddle.
Magnetic Waves Found by a New Telescope Could Finally Explain the Sun's Burning Atmosphere
The results were obtained in Hawaii using the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST) of the National Science Foundation, according to a research published in Nature Astronomy. The researchers were able to discover something that had long escaped them thanks to the high-resolution observations: "Alfvén waves," which are believed to transfer enormous quantities of energy from the Sun's surface into its outer atmosphere. According to an email from Richard Morton, a solar physicist at Northumbria University who spearheaded the study, waves like this might account for as much as half of the corona's renownedly high temperature.Magnetic waves were initially theorized by scientists in 1942, but they haven't been seen yet. DKIST's Cryogenic Near Infrared Spectropolarimeter, according to Morton, enabled this new degree of detail, which showed twisting patterns in the Sun's magnetic field. These consistent waves seemed to have sufficient energy to warm the corona, supporting a long-held hypothesis about their nature.
It is discovered that the solar corona is heated by a combination of Alfvén waves and magnetic reconnection, with wave-mode heating providing half of the necessary heat. The findings provide hints about the universe's star energy generation, space weather forecasting, and solar riddles.
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