New Solar Telescope Unveils the Complex Dynamics of Sunspots' Dark Cores

An anonymous reader writes: The high-resolution images, taken by the New Solar Telescope (NST), show the atmosphere above the umbrae (the dark patches in the center of sunspots) to be finely structured, consisting of hot plasma intermixed with cool plasma jets as wide as 100 kilometers. These ground breaking images are being captured by scientists at NJIT's Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO). Sunspots are formed when strong magnetic fields rise up from the convection zone, a region beneath the photosphere that transfers energy from the interior of the Sun to its surface. At the surface, the magnetic fields concentrate into bundles, which prevent the hot rising plasma from reaching the surface. This energy deficit causes the magnetic bundles to cool down to temperatures about 1,000 degrees lower than their surroundings. The NST takes snapshots of the Sun every 10 seconds, which are then strung together as a video to reveal fast-evolving small explosions, plasma flows and the movement of magnetic fields.

Comments

Video?

[garyisabusyguy]

Does anybody have a link to the video that they mention in the article?

Re:Video?

[kesuki]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2NLfVNRvGA

this looks like it.

Re:Video?

[garyisabusyguy]

Thanks, the vid was a little underwhelming,
A total of 10 images, each lasting ten seconds with a pan/scan added that tries to make it look like it's moving faster than that, but that blows the frame of referene from image to image so you can't see how the light and dark areas as moving
I was hoping for a few thousand images built into a video at 30 frames a seconds for the full 60's psychedelic rock show experience
Yeah, yeah, I wanted too much for my simple amusement :/

Re:Video?

[Anonymous Coward]

http://www.space.com/26341-sun...

Re:Video?

[Whiteox]

Freaky

Re:Video?

[Anonymous Coward]

That's not a video, it's a Ken Burns effect applied to a single photo over and over again

Re:Video?

[garyisabusyguy]

Nice

Thank you

Re:Video?

[Anonymous Coward]

That video fucking sucks.

Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Guildor]

I do look at these kinds of images with wonder and awe, as do most of us. But I can't say the same about our insights into how the sun works. The model for the sun is nearly as bad as the model for a comet. No, actually, I think it's worse. It really doesn't answer what's going on, and leaves far too many questions. It hints towards the truth a little, when a mere mention of plasma appears. It talks about magnetic fields too - and from this, we kind of assume certain composition of the sun, much as we do our own planet. But the impossible mission of how the heat comes from the centre, and skips the relatively cool surface, to somehow end up as millions of degrees above, just makes no sense at all, especially when we consider that gases expanding will cool - so, how hot would the centre have to be? That's just one such concern. Anyone care to share their thoughts on a model that better fits observation? I know the Electric Universe offers a very plausible explanation, but I was wondering if other people had their own views, or theories they'd like to share.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Nutria]

But the impossible mission of how the heat comes from the centre, and skips the relatively cool surface, to somehow end up as millions of degrees above, just makes no sense at all

It doesn't make sense to *us*, the popular science reading public. But does it make sense to the actual scientists?

And even if it doesn't make sense to them, so what? That's why they built the New Solar Telescope!! To, you know, learn new things and make better hypotheses.

I know the Electric Universe offers a very plausible explanation

Now we know you're either (1) a crank, or (2) terribly young and naive.

I was wondering if other people had their own views, or theories they'd like to share.

Anyone who "shares" (such a *compassionate* word :eyeroll:) their expertise in the subject and is not an actual solar scientist is either a blowhard, a crank, or both.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Anonymous Coward]

But the impossible mission of how the heat comes from the centre, and skips the relatively cool surface, to somehow end up as millions of degrees above, just makes no sense at all, especially when we consider that gases expanding will cool - so, how hot would the centre have to be? That's just one such concern. Anyone care to share their thoughts on a model that better fits observation?

You don't really say how it is impossible or makes no sense, although you also don't seem to mention what current ideas are actually held by scientists, so I'm not sure what you are actually basing your judgement on: mainstream science or a strawman (and unfortunately some of your previous posts about black holes and comets seem to use the latter).

This is unfortunately one of the places pop-sci tends to act like scientists have no idea what is going on, but that is not necessarily the status of "mysteries" or big questions in science, as in this case there are at least two potential theories (plus occasional other ones that popup for a short while for consideration). It is not an issue of having no idea, but a question which of two ideas.

Both use magnetic fields to carry energy from deeper in the sun past the photosphere and into the chromosphere and corona. The density drops off here by 11 orders of magnitude (this is a larger change in density than going from the solid ground into the upper edge of Earth's atmosphere). In part, it shouldn't be surprising that the dynamics are changing, and that it is much easier to heat plasma by only two orders of magnitude in temperature when it is that many times less dense. The question then becomes which is the dominant form of heating: the action of waves from the magnetic field lines shaking around, or heating due to currents induced from the magnetic field lines moving around on a slower timescale. Both effects have been observed to be present and cause heating, the question is just which one dominates and is more significant.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Anonymous Coward]

I did hear one theory that what we see is the radiant atmosphere, underneath which is a much cooler body. The sunspots are actually holes, like the center of a downdraught.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[atherophage]

Solar scientists are unable to explain these temperature differences. The American Astronomical Society recently had a gathering (http://aas.org/meetings/tess2015/) where evidence was presented about yet another conjured-up feature/explanation: "nano-flares" in an attempt to explain the unexplainable. Solar scientists still mention magnetic reconnection as a possible mechanism. The electric universe group suggest more weight be given to observational evidence instead of mathematical constructs. That perhaps gravity is not the only force actively shaping the cosmos. Instead of resorting to more bizarre phenomena such as dark matter/ dark energy, WIMPS, and so on - created mathematically to decipher the unknown - to make-it-fit in a gravity-only schema that electricity, evidence of which is acknowledged to be present in space is not a benign force. Instead of dismissing the electrical universe theory with derogatory hateful words simply agree to disagree.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Nutria]

The electric universe group suggest more weight be given to observational evidence instead of mathematical constructs.

But "math stuff" and "bizarre phenomena" sure have worked so far. That computer you wrote that from, for example, wouldn't be as small nor fast as it is without an understanding of the bizarre mathematical phenomenon know as quantum mechanics.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Anonymous Coward]

Solar scientists are unable to explain these temperature differences.

No, the problem is they have multiple explanation as are not quite sure which one works best.

Solar scientists still mention magnetic reconnection as a possible mechanism.

Because observation still continue to support it as a potential mechanism, both directly in the atmosphere of the Sun, and now in laboratory experiments.

The electric universe group suggest more weight be given to observational evidence instead of mathematical constructs.

Except in this case you are talking about observational evidence, as observation continues to support the presence of things like reconnection and Alfven waves.

And I don't see much acknowledgement of lack of observation of electric and magnetic fields in measurements where EU theories would require large currents.

That perhaps gravity is not the only force actively shaping the cosmos.

This seems like a non sequitur in this case, because this is a case that has been attributed to plasma physics since its inception. It is funny how often I've seen some EU promoters deny the use of plasma physics in even direct plasma physics topics though. I've seen them at plasma physics conferences in astrophysics talks, that they later will continue to claim that astrophysicists don't consider plasma effects.

Instead of dismissing the electrical universe theory with derogatory hateful words simply agree to disagree.

Agreeing to disagree would be a nice way to go, although it seems it is very rare for EU proponents to not put words in the mouths of other astrophysicists.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Anonymous Coward]

nope, some one posed a question, and someone proposed an way to answer a question. A committee met, and said yup. and a device was born. But yours sounded better.

Re:Solar model of sun spots stinks!

[Anonymous Coward]

Electric Universe theory, the opposite of the 80/20 rule. Kind of explains 20% of observations, conflicts with the other 80%. I put it right up there with Scientology.