Bibcode
DOI
Sánchez Almeida, J.
Bibliographical reference
The Astrophysical Journal, Volume 622, Issue 2, pp. 1292-1313.
Advertised on:
4
2005
Journal
Citations
43
Refereed citations
31
Description
Small-scale fluctuations of magnetic field and velocity may be
responsible for the Stokes asymmetries observed in all photospheric
magnetic structures (the microstructured magnetic atmosphere [MISMA]
hypothesis). We support the hypothesis by showing that atmospheres with
optically thin microstructure reproduce the polarization of Fe I
λλ6301.5 and 6302.5 observed in a sunspot. Ten thousand
spectra were fitted by model MISMAs with two magnetic components
interleaved along the line of sight. Combining all the fits, we set up a
semiempirical model sunspot characterized by two components with very
different magnetic field inclinations. The major component, which
contains most of the mass, is more vertical than the minor component.
The field lines of the minor component are inclined below the horizontal
plane throughout the penumbra. Magnetic field lines and mass flows are
parallel; consequently, both upflows and downflows are present
everywhere on the penumbra. Major and minor components have very
different velocities (several hundred meters per second for the major
component versus 10 km s-1 for the minor component), but the
mass transported per unit time is similar. The similarity between the
vertical mass flow and the magnetic flux of the two components suggests
that field lines emerging as major components may return to the
photosphere as minor components. If so, the observed magnetic field
strength difference between components leads to a siphon flow whose
magnitude and direction agree with the inferred Evershed flow. Several
tests support the internal consistency of the retrieved model sunspot.
The magnetic field vector B does not violate the ∇B=0 condition.
The model sunspot reproduces the net circular polarization of the
observed lines plus the abnormal behavior of Fe I λ15648. The use
of only one magnetic component to interpret the spectra leads to
inferring upflows in the inner penumbra and downflows in the outer
penumbra, in agreement with previous findings.