The quiet-Sun photosphere and chromosphere
Abstract
The overall structure and the fine structure of the solar photosphere outside active regions are largely understood, except possibly important roles of a turbulent near-surface dynamo at its bottom, internal gravity waves at its top, and small-scale vorticity. Classical 1D static radiation-escape modelling has been replaced by 3D time-dependent MHD simulations that come closer to reality. The solar chromosphere, in contrast, remains ill-understood although its pivotal role in coronal mass and energy loading makes it a principal research area. Its fine structure defines its overall structure, so that hard-to-observe and hard-to-model small-scale dynamical processes are the key to understanding. However, both chromospheric observation and chromospheric simulation presently mature towards the required sophistication. The open-field features seem of greater interest than the easier-to-see closed-field features.
- Publication:
-
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London Series A
- Pub Date:
- July 2012
- DOI:
- 10.1098/rsta.2011.0537
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1110.6606
- Bibcode:
- 2012RSPTA.370.3129R
- Keywords:
-
- Astrophysics - Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- Accepted for special issue "Astrophysical Processes on the Sun" of Phil. Trans. Royal Soc. A, ed. C. Parnell. Note: clicking on the year in a citation opens the corresponding ADS abstract page in the browser