Alfvén Waves:
Researchers have made a major advance in solar physics by capturing the first direct evidence of small-scale torsional Alfvén waves in the Sun’s outer atmosphere, known as the corona.
- Alfven waves are low-frequency, transverse electromagnetic waves that propagate along the Sun’s magnetic field lines.
- It occurs in a plasma(or conducting fluid), resulting from the interaction of the magnetic fields and electric currents within it.
- These waves were first proposed in 1942 by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Hannes Alfvén, are magnetic fluctuations that transfer energy through plasma.
- Larger and more sporadic Alfven waves linked to solar flares have been detected before.
- The breakthrough was made possible by the unique capabilities of the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope’s Cryogenic Near Infrared Spectropolarimeter (Cryo-NIRSP).
- This is the first time the subtle, ever-present twisting waves, thought to be powerful enough to heat the corona, have been directly confirmed.
- The study suggests that Alfven waves may account for at least half of the energy needed to heat the corona.
