• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.84.1-84.1
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• 2012

Recent spectropolarimetric observations with high spatial resolution and high polarization sensitivity have provided us with new insight to better understand the quiet-Sun magnetism. This talk is concerned with the ubiquitous transient horizontal magnetic fields in the quiet-Sun, as revealed by the Solar Optical Telescope (SOT) on board Hinode satellite. Exploiting the SOT data with careful treatment of photon noise, we reveal the enigmatic properties of these horizontal magnetic fields such as lifetime, size, position in terms of granular structure, occurrence rate, three-dimensional structure, total magnetic flux, field strength distribution, relationship with the meso- and super-granulations and so on. Based on these observational consequences, we conjecture that the local dynamo process, which takes place in a relatively shallow layer with the granular size, produces these transient horizontal magnetic fields and that these horizontal magnetic fields contribute to the considerable amount of quiet-Sun magnetic fields. We also estimate the magnetic energy flux carried by these horizontal magnetic fields based on the statistical data, and find that the total magnetic energy is comparable to the total chromospheric and coronal energy loss, implying their important role for the chromospheric heating and dynamism.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.50 no.6
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• pp.179-184
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• 2017

We present a new method for solving an inverse problem of flux emergence which transports subsurface magnetic flux from an inaccessible interior to the surface where magnetic structures may be observed to form, such as solar active regions. To make a quantitative evaluation of magnetic structures having various characteristics, we derive physical properties of subsurface magnetic field that characterize those structures formed through flux emergence. The derivation is performed by inversion from an evolutionary relation between two observables obtained at the surface, emerged magnetic flux and injected magnetic helicity, the former of which provides scale information while the latter represents the configuration of magnetic field.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.44 no.5
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• pp.143-150
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• 2011

This paper reports a characteristic motion of a polarity inversion line (PIL) formed at the solar surface, which is newly found by performing a three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulation of flux emergence in the Sun. A magnetic flux tube composed of twisted field lines is assumed to emerge below the surface, forming a bipolar region with a PIL at the surface. A key finding is the successive half-turn rotation of the PIL, leading to the formation of a quadrupolar-like region at the surface and a magnetic configuration in the corona; this configuration is reminiscent of, but essentially different from the so-called inverse-polarity configuration of a filament magnetic field. We discuss a physical mechanism for producing the half-turn rotation of a PIL, which gives new insights into the magnetic structure formed via flux emergence. This presents a reasonable explanation of the configuration of a filament magnetic field suggested by observations.