On the Response of the Transition Region and the Corona to Rapid Excursions in the Chromosphere

• Published in: arXiv.org
• Main Authors: Chaurasiya, Ravi, Ankala Raja Bayanna, Louis, R E, Pereira, T M D, Mathew, S K
• Format: Paper Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 08.08.2024
• Subjects: Chromosphere; Physics - Solar and Stellar Astrophysics; Solar activity; Solar limb; Solar observatories; Spacetime; Spectra; Spectral signatures; Spicules; Trajectories; Upper atmosphere
• ISSN: 2331-8422
• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2408.04341

Spicules are the thin hair/grass-like structures that are prominently observed at the chromospheric solar limb. It is believed that fibrils and rapid blueshifted and redshifted excursions (RBEs and RREs; collectively referred to as REs) correspond to on-disk counterparts of type I spicules and type II spicules, respectively. Our investigation focuses on observing the response of these REs alongside similar spectral features in the chromosphere, transition Region (TR), and corona, utilizing space-time plots derived from coordinated observations from Swedish 1 m Solar Telescope/H{\alpha}, Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), and Solar Dynamics Observatory. Our analysis reveals upflowing REs, promptly reaching temperatures characteristic of the TR and corona, indicating a multi-thermal nature. Similarly, downflowing features exhibiting similar spectral signatures over the disk display plasma motion from the corona to chromospheric temperatures, demonstrating a multithermal nature. In addition to distinct upflows and downflows, we observe sequential upflow and downflow along the same path, depicting a distinctive parabolic trajectory in space-time plots of observations sampling TR and various coronal passbands. Similar to isolated upflows and downflows, these REs also exhibit a multi-thermal nature throughout their trajectory. Furthermore, our results reveal a more intricate motion of the REs in which both upflow and downflow coexist at the same spatial location. On a different note, our analysis, utilizing coordinated IRIS spectral observations, shows spatio-temporal redshifts/downflows in both the TR and chromosphere, suggesting that at least subsets of the strong redshifts/downflows observed in TR temperature spectra result from the return from the upper atmosphere flow of plasma in the form of bundles of spicules or features exhibiting similar spectra.