Newly Discovered Source of Turbulence and Heating in the Solar Chromosphere

• Published in: Astrophysical journal. Letters Vol. 891; no. 1; p. L9
• Main Authors: Oppenheim, Meers, Dimant, Yakov, Longley, William, Fletcher, Alex C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Austin The American Astronomical Society 01.03.2020; IOP Publishing
• Subjects: Astronomical models; Atmospheric flows; Atmospheric models; Chromosphere; Computational fluid dynamics; Computer simulation; Energy flow; Large-scale models; Magnetohydrodynamic stability; Photosphere; Physicists; Plasma instabilities; Quiet solar chromosphere; Radiation; Scale models; Small-scale turbulence; Solar chromosphere; Solar power; Solar system; Solar wind; Stellar atmospheres; Stellar winds; Temperature rise; Thermal plasmas; Turbulence
• ISSN: 2041-8205; 2041-8213
• DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ab75bc

Above the Sun's luminous photosphere lies the solar chromosphere, where the temperature increases from below 4000 K to over 1 million K. Though physicists do not understand the origin of these increases, they know it powers the solar wind with enormous consequences for the entire solar system. This report describes a set of simulations and analytical theory showing that solar atmospheric flows originating in the photosphere will frequently drive a previously unidentified thermal plasma instability that rapidly develops into turbulence. Though this turbulence is small scale (centimeters to a few meters), it will modify the conductivity, temperatures, and energy flows through much of the chromosphere. Incorporating the effects of this turbulence, and other small-scale turbulence, into large-scale models of solar and stellar atmospheres will improve physicists' ability to model energy flows with important consequences for the predicted temperatures and radiation patterns.