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In the sun’s corona, it has been discovered that the outer layer, which can reach temperatures of over a million degrees Celsius, is chemically completely different from the rest of the star despite its physical connection.
Astronomers have been unable to explain and prove this phenomenon for over half a century, making it one of the continuing astronomical mysteries.
Now, researchers have found the first observational evidence to show that magnetic waves in the chromosphere – the sun’s middle layer – split the plasma, stimulating only charged ions on the corona, leaving neutral particles behind.
A research article published by astronomers at University College London and the Italian Space Agency provides the first evidence to support this ancient theory.
The researchers analyzed data from telescopes in New Mexico as well as in space to simultaneously observe the same portion of the sun in an attempt to find the waves.
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The observed patterns were recreated using computer modeling, and scientists found that waves reflected in the chromosphere are magnetically related to regions of abundant ionized particles in the corona.
“These results indicate a link between chromospheric activity in sunspots and observed changes in the composition of coronary plasma,” the researchers wrote in their study, published today in the Journal of Astrophysics.
The theory of magnetic waves which divides the plasma and propels the ions into the corona was first proposed in the 1960s.
The causes of the waves are still unknown, but scientists believe they are generated in the volatile corona by millions of tiny explosions called nanoflares.
“The different chemical compositions of the sun’s inner and outer layers were first observed over 50 years ago,” lead author Dr Deborah Baker told MailOnline. This discovery raised one of the long-standing questions in astrophysics. . The difference in composition is surprising, given that indicates that the layers are physically linked and that the crown material is from the innermost layer, the photosphere. Now, thanks to a unique set of terrestrial and space observations of the heliosphere, done almost simultaneously, it is possible to definitively detect magnetic waves in the chromosphere. And to relate them to the abundance of crown elements that are not found inside the sun. “
Dr Marco Stangalini of the Italian Space Agency in Rome says the results apply to other stars besides the sun.
Astronomers are now more interested in the sun’s corona than ever because of its role in shaping the solar wind, which carries ions 92 million kilometers from the sun to Earth and creates the northern and southern lights.
When these charged particles reach the Earth’s magnetic field, which is stronger at the poles, they release energy, and this is evident in the enchanting celestial light we see on Earth, visible at high and low latitudes.
However, when the constant stream of charged particles turns into a deluge after a violent burp on the Sun’s surface, it could affect microelectric systems and satellite industries.
Source: Daily Mail
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