Prevalence of small-scale jets from the networks of the solar transition region and chromosphere

H Tian; E E DeLuca; S R Cranmer; B De Pontieu; H Peter; J Martínez-Sykora; L Golub; S McKillop; K K Reeves; M P Miralles; P McCauley; S Saar; P Testa; M Weber; N Murphy; J Lemen; A Title; P Boerner; N Hurlburt; T D Tarbell; J P Wuelser; L Kleint; C Kankelborg; S Jaeggli; M Carlsson; V Hansteen; S W McIntosh

doi:10.1126/science.1255711

Prevalence of small-scale jets from the networks of the solar transition region and chromosphere

Science. 2014 Oct 17;346(6207):1255711. doi: 10.1126/science.1255711.

Authors

H Tian¹, E E DeLuca², S R Cranmer², B De Pontieu³, H Peter⁴, J Martínez-Sykora⁵, L Golub², S McKillop², K K Reeves², M P Miralles², P McCauley², S Saar², P Testa², M Weber², N Murphy², J Lemen³, A Title³, P Boerner³, N Hurlburt³, T D Tarbell³, J P Wuelser³, L Kleint⁵, C Kankelborg⁶, S Jaeggli⁶, M Carlsson⁷, V Hansteen⁷, S W McIntosh⁸

Affiliations

¹ Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. [email protected].
² Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
³ Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory, 3251 Hanover Street, Organization A021S, Building 252, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA.
⁴ Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 3, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
⁵ Lockheed Martin Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory, 3251 Hanover Street, Organization A021S, Building 252, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA. Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, 596 1st Street West, Sonoma, CA 95476, USA.
⁶ Department of Physics, Montana State University, Post Office Box 173840, Bozeman, MT 59717, USA.
⁷ Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Oslo, Post Office Box 1029, Blindern, 0315 Oslo, Norway.
⁸ High Altitude Observatory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Post Office Box 3000, Boulder, CO 80307, USA.

PMID: 25324395
DOI: 10.1126/science.1255711

Abstract

As the interface between the Sun's photosphere and corona, the chromosphere and transition region play a key role in the formation and acceleration of the solar wind. Observations from the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph reveal the prevalence of intermittent small-scale jets with speeds of 80 to 250 kilometers per second from the narrow bright network lanes of this interface region. These jets have lifetimes of 20 to 80 seconds and widths of ≤300 kilometers. They originate from small-scale bright regions, often preceded by footpoint brightenings and accompanied by transverse waves with amplitudes of ~20 kilometers per second. Many jets reach temperatures of at least ~10(5) kelvin and constitute an important element of the transition region structures. They are likely an intermittent but persistent source of mass and energy for the solar wind.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.