Researchers Track Complex Turbulence in the Sun’s Corona, Revealing the Mechanics of Solar Wind

Researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi have used rare total solar eclipses to gain unprecedented insights into the turbulent structures of the sun’s outer atmosphere, the corona. This discovery, resulting from over a decade of observations, reveals how these turbulent features, previously hidden, can travel vast distances and play a key role in the formation of the solar wind.

For the first time, the team led by Shadia Habbal at the Institute for Astronomy has identified turbulent structures within the sun’s corona that can survive far from the solar surface. The Astrophysical Journal features their findings, which provide a clearer picture of how solar wind forms and evolves.

A New View of the Sun’s Atmosphere

During a total solar eclipse, the moon briefly obscures the Sun’s bright surface, or photosphere, allowing astronomers to observe the fainter corona with remarkable detail. Unlike standard solar observations, these moments expose the corona’s intricate, thread-like structures, shaped by magnetic fields emerging from below the Sun’s surface. As Shadia Habbal explained:

“This work helps us understand how the Sun transfers energy into space. That process ultimately affects space weather, which can disrupt satellites, communications, and power systems on Earth.”

She added that these high-resolution images of the corona reveal a far more dynamic environment than previously understood. The complex magnetic fields and energetic activities occurring in the corona have long been a mystery, and this latest research represents a significant step forward in unlocking their secrets.

Turbulence Revealed by Eclipse Data

By analyzing data collected over nearly 12 years, spanning a full solar cycle, the research team identified clear signs of turbulence within the corona. These turbulent features include vortex rings that resemble smoke rings and wave-like motions similar to those seen in Earth’s clouds.

The study explained that prominences, which are large, cooler, and denser structures rising from the Sun’s surface, are the source of solar turbulence. The sharp differences in temperature and density between these prominences and the surrounding plasma trigger turbulent behavior.

“For the first time, we were able to watch these turbulent structures form near the Sun and then follow them as they flowed outward with the solar wind,” Habbal stated.

Chasing the Sun’s Wild Ride of Turbulence

What makes this study particularly groundbreaking is the ability to track these turbulent structures as they flow outward with the solar wind. The team’s observations show that these turbulent features remain intact even as they travel vast distances into space.

“Seeing the same features later in space-based images tells us they remain intact over enormous distances,” he concluded.

By following the path of these turbulent features from their origin near the Sun’s surface to their eventual movement outward, the research sheds light on the mechanisms driving the solar wind and coronal heating.