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4mo ago

Cona Adaptive Optics Reveals Hidden Dynamics in Sun’s Corona

Its Big Bear deployment paves the way for installation at Hawaii’s four-meter DKIST telescope

© Schmidt et al./NJIT/NSO/AURA/NSF
Image
This image is a snapshot from a 16-minute time-lapse movie showing the formation and collapse of a complexly shaped plasma stream traveling at almost 100 km per seconds in front of a coronal loop system. This is likely the first time such a stream, which the scientists refer to as plasmoid, has been observed, leaving them wondering about the physical explanation of the observed dynamics. This image was taken by the Goode Solar Telescope at Big Bear Solar Observatory using the new coronal adaptive optics system Cona. The image shows the hydrogen-alpha light emitted by the solar plasma. The image is artificially colorized, yet based on the color of hydrogen-alpha light, and darker color is brighter light. Image credit: Schmidt et al. / NJIT / NSO / AURA / NSF.

Overview

  • Cona has been successfully deployed on the 1.6-meter Goode Solar Telescope at Big Bear Solar Observatory, correcting atmospheric distortion with 2,200 mirror adjustments per second.
  • The system achieves a theoretical resolution of 63 kilometers and can resolve coronal rain strands narrower than 20 kilometers.
  • High-resolution images and time-lapse movies captured by Cona reveal complex magnetic reconnections within solar prominences and rapid plasma flows moving at nearly 100 km per second.
  • Cona’s wavefront sensor and deformable mirrors overcome Earth’s turbulent atmosphere to deliver unprecedented views of the corona’s fine structures.
  • Plans are underway to deploy Cona at the four-meter Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope in Hawaii for even finer studies of the Sun’s outer atmosphere.