Published , Modified Abstract on NASA's IRIS spots nanojets: Shining light on heating the solar corona Original source
NASA's IRIS spots nanojets: Shining light on heating the solar corona
The sun is a fascinating celestial body that has always intrigued scientists and astronomers. One of the most mysterious aspects of the sun is its corona, which is the outermost layer of its atmosphere. The corona is much hotter than the surface of the sun, and scientists have been trying to understand why for decades. Recently, NASA's Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) has spotted nanojets that may help shed some light on this mystery.
What is IRIS?
Before we dive into the details of IRIS's discovery, let's first understand what IRIS is. IRIS is a NASA spacecraft that was launched in 2013 with the primary goal of studying the sun's chromosphere and transition region. The chromosphere is the layer of the sun's atmosphere that lies just above its visible surface, while the transition region is where the temperature of the sun's atmosphere rapidly increases from thousands to millions of degrees.
What are nanojets?
Nanojets are small, narrow jets of material that shoot out from the surface of the sun. They are only a few hundred kilometers wide and extend up to several thousand kilometers into the corona. Nanojets were first observed in 2007 by Japan's Hinode spacecraft, but their exact nature and role in heating the corona have remained a mystery until now.
IRIS spots nanojets
Recently, IRIS has detected nanojets in unprecedented detail. The spacecraft captured images of these tiny jets using its ultraviolet telescope, which can observe the sun at a wavelength that corresponds to temperatures of around 1 million degrees Celsius.
IRIS observed that nanojets occur frequently in regions where magnetic fields are particularly strong and twisted. These regions are known as active regions and are often associated with sunspots and solar flares.
What do nanojets tell us about heating the corona?
The corona is much hotter than the surface of the sun, which is counterintuitive since heat typically flows from hot to cold. Scientists have long suspected that magnetic fields play a crucial role in heating the corona, but the exact mechanism has remained elusive.
Nanojets may provide a clue to this mystery. IRIS's observations suggest that nanojets are a result of magnetic reconnection, which is a process where magnetic fields break and reconnect, releasing energy in the process. This energy could potentially heat the corona.
Conclusion
NASA's IRIS spacecraft has made an exciting discovery by spotting nanojets in unprecedented detail. These tiny jets may help scientists understand how the sun's corona is heated, which has been a mystery for decades. IRIS's observations suggest that magnetic reconnection may play a crucial role in this process.
FAQs
1. What is the corona of the sun?
The corona is the outermost layer of the sun's atmosphere and is much hotter than its surface.
2. What is IRIS?
IRIS is a NASA spacecraft that was launched in 2013 with the primary goal of studying the sun's chromosphere and transition region.
3. What are nanojets?
Nanojets are small, narrow jets of material that shoot out from the surface of the sun.
4. What role do nanojets play in heating the corona?
Nanojets may be a result of magnetic reconnection, which could potentially heat the corona.
5. Why is understanding how the corona is heated important?
Understanding how the corona is heated can help scientists better understand solar flares and other space weather phenomena that can affect Earth.
This abstract is presented as an informational news item only and has not been reviewed by a subject matter professional. This abstract should not be considered medical advice. This abstract might have been generated by an artificial intelligence program. See TOS for details.