India’s Cosmic Detectives Spot Sun’s Hidden Plasma Highways

In a groundbreaking discovery, Indian researchers have discovered small plasma loops in the lower atmosphere of the Sun—a finding that could revolutionize our knowledge of how the Sun accumulates and explosively releases magnetic energy. The small loops, previously invisible due to their ephemeral nature and minute size, may be the key to understanding some of the Sun's most energetic and mysterious phenomena.

 

Key Highlights

 

Discovery of Miniature Loops: Scientists from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) have discovered plasma loops measuring just 3,000–4,000 km in length and less than 100 km in width and lasting a few minutes in duration—very elusive to the last generation of telescopes.

 

Current Observation Techniques: Scientists employed observations from the Goode Solar Telescope (BBSO), NASA's IRIS, and the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) to observe these loops in visible, ultraviolet, and extreme-ultraviolet wavelengths in different layers of the sun.

 

Magnetic Reconnection: The loops are thought to be energized by a phenomenon called magnetic reconnection, in which tangled magnetic field lines snap and reform, releasing bursts of energy—much like the mechanism that drives colossal solar flares.

 

Plasma Jets and Explosions: Plasma jets were observed to originate at the loop tops, suggesting that the loops and the jets are equally produced by the same explosive magnetic mechanisms.

 

Million-Degree Mystery: With sophisticated analysis, researchers determined that such small loops become as hot as several million degrees, even in the dense chromosphere—a result that challenges current solar heating models.

 

Future Prospects: The future National Large Solar Telescope (NLST) at Ladakh will further de-mystify the Sun's micro-magnetic secrets, which could have the potential to shape our understanding of space weather and its effects on our planet.

 

This finding not only opens a new window to the unknown dynamical nature of the Sun but also has significant implications for the prediction of space weather events that can interfere with satellites, communications, and power grids on Earth.

 

Source: Press Information Bureau (PIB), The Morung Express, Devdiscourse