Quantifying Properties of Photospheric Magnetic Field Cancellation Events in the Quiet Sun Internetwork

The behavior of the small-scale internetwork (IN) magnetic fields on the quiet sun is a frontier poorly understood. Since the quiet sun represents a majority of the Sun's flux output even during solar maximum, analyzing its processes is a key step in understanding the fundamental aspects of solar magnetism. IN cancellations in particular are important to characterize since they represent the major process occurring constantly on the quiet Sun. By observing these IN cancellations with high spatial and temporal resolutions with the Swedish 1m Solar Telescope (SST), we were able to analyze twelve cancellation events and describe their magnetic field properties. Applying a polarity-tracking algorithm, YAFTA, to a sequence of line-of-sight magnetograms, we found a mean cancellation flux of 1.11*10¹⁷ Mx and a mean cancellation rate of 1.61*10¹⁴ Mx s^-1. Using the Doppler velocity at the PIL we found that all magnetic cancellations are associated with omega-loop submergence with a mean peak downflow speed of 1.02 km s^-1, a figure statistically greater than regional convective downflow behavior. Analyzing the convergence speeds of the polarities suggests granular motions are the primary catalyst for IN cancellation events. Data gathered in this study complements existing understanding of magnetic behavior on the quiet Sun.