Related papers: Morphological study of penumbral formation
We employ high-spatial resolution spectropolarimetric observations from the Solar Optical Telescope on-board the Hinode spacecraft to investigate the fine structure of the penumbral magnetic fields. The Stokes vector of two neutral iron…
We report on high angular resolution, high precision spectropolarimetric measurements of a decaying sunspot. The spot gradually lost its penumbra during the course of three days. In the late stages of evolution where the only remnant of the…
We analyzed the size, intensity, and magnetic field strength of sunspot umbrae to compare the present cycle 24 with the previous one. We used data of the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory and selected…
We studied the variations of line-of-sight photospheric plasma flows during the formation phase of the penumbra around a pore in Active Region NOAA 11490. We used a high spatial, spectral, and temporal resolution data set acquired by the…
Combining high-resolution spectropolarimetric and imaging data is key to understanding the decay process of sunspots as it allows us scrutinizing the velocity and magnetic fields of sunspots and their surroundings. Active region NOAA 12597…
Context: Observations at 0.1" have revealed the existence of dark cores in the bright filaments of sunspot penumbrae. Expectations are high that such dark-cored filaments are the basic building blocks of the penumbra, but their nature…
We investigate the vertical gradient of the magnetic field of sunspots in the photospheric layer. Independent observations were obtained with the SOT/SP onboard the Hinode spacecraft and with the TIP-2 mounted at the VTT. We apply…
Sunspots are regions of decreased brightness on the visible surface of the Sun (photosphere) that are associated with strong magnetic fields. They have been found to be locations associated with solar flares, which occur when energy stored…
We studied the physical parameters of the penumbra in a large and fully-developed sunspot, one of the largest over the last two solar cycles, by using full-Stokes measurements taken at the photospheric Fe I 617.3 nm and chromospheric Ca II…
High resolution spectropolarimetric observations by Hinode reveal the existence of supersonic downflows at the umbra-penumbra boundary of 3 sunspots that was recently reported by Louis et al. (2010). These downflows are observed to be…
High-resolution observations of sunspots have revealed the existence of dark cores inside the bright filaments of the penumbra. Here we present the stationary solution of the heat transfer equation in a stratified penumbra consisting of…
We present numerical 2D magnetostatic models for sunspot penumbrae consisting of radially aligned field-free gaps in a potential magnetic field, as proposed by Spruit and Scharmer (2006). The shape of the gaps and the field configurations…
We demonstrate that the radial magnetic-field component at the outer boundary of the sunspot penumbra is about 550 Mx cm$^{-2}$ independent of the sunspot area and the maximum magnetic field in the umbra. The mean magnetic-field intensity…
Daily records of sunspot group areas compiled by the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, from May of 1874 through 1976 indicate a curious history for the penumbral areas of the smaller sunspot groups. On average, the ratio of penumbral area to…
The conjecture that energy transport in sunspot penumbrae occurs through convection by an interchange of magnetic flux tubes is used in order to construct a magnetostatic model for a deep penumbra which is part of a global sunspot model.…
Context. A significant part of the penumbral magnetic field returns below the surface in the very deep photosphere. For lines in the visible, a large portion of this return field can only be detected indirectly by studying its imprints on…
Whereas penumbral models during the last 15 years have been successful in explaining Evershed flows and magnetic field inclination variations in terms of flux tubes, the lack of contact between these models and a convective process needed…
aims: We study the recently discovered twisting motion of bright penumbral filaments with the aim of constraining their geometry and the associated magnetic field. methods: A large sunspot located $40\degr$ from disk center was observed at…
MHD simulations of sunspots have successfully reproduced many aspects of sunspot fine structure as consequence of magneto convection in inclined magnetic field. We study how global sunspot properties and penumbral fine structure depend on…
Bipolar Light Bridges (BLBs) are bright regions located between sunspot umbrae of opposite magnetic polarity. They are typically characterized by strong magnetic fields and intense flows, which are believed to be closely associated with…