Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness
We present a new 3D magnetohydrostatic (MHS) direct elliptic solver for extrapolating the coronal magnetic field from photospheric boundary conditions in a manner consistent with an assumed plasma distribution. We use it to study the uniqueness of the reconstructed magnetic field as a function of ho...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2020-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab9dfd |
| _version_ | 1797697065167355904 |
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| author | Nat H. Mathews Natasha Flyer Sarah E. Gibson |
| author_facet | Nat H. Mathews Natasha Flyer Sarah E. Gibson |
| author_sort | Nat H. Mathews |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We present a new 3D magnetohydrostatic (MHS) direct elliptic solver for extrapolating the coronal magnetic field from photospheric boundary conditions in a manner consistent with an assumed plasma distribution. We use it to study the uniqueness of the reconstructed magnetic field as a function of how significant the plasma forcing is on the force balance of the magnetic field. To this end, we consider an analytic MHS model as ground truth. The model uses two free parameters to decompose the current into two parts: a magnetic-field-aligned component and a cross-field component. We perform a comprehensive study of the 2D parameter space to understand under what conditions the ground truth can be reproduced uniquely. We find that current oriented perpendicular to the magnetic field has a smaller solution space than the same amount of current oriented parallel to the magnetic field, and so MHS regimes with larger proportions of plasma-related forcing may be a promising avenue toward finding unique magnetic field reconstructions. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T03:34:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a07e13ed42414be0a59d206dbe0fe55a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T03:34:57Z |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-a07e13ed42414be0a59d206dbe0fe55a2023-09-03T13:19:46ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572020-01-0189817010.3847/1538-4357/ab9dfdReconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution UniquenessNat H. Mathews0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8839-7860Natasha Flyer1Sarah E. Gibson2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9831-2640Department of Applied Mathematics University of Colorado 526 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309, USA ; n.h.mathews@nasa.govDepartment of Applied Mathematics University of Colorado 526 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309, USA ; n.h.mathews@nasa.govNational Center for Atmospheric Research , 1850 Table Mesa Drive, Boulder, CO 80305, USAWe present a new 3D magnetohydrostatic (MHS) direct elliptic solver for extrapolating the coronal magnetic field from photospheric boundary conditions in a manner consistent with an assumed plasma distribution. We use it to study the uniqueness of the reconstructed magnetic field as a function of how significant the plasma forcing is on the force balance of the magnetic field. To this end, we consider an analytic MHS model as ground truth. The model uses two free parameters to decompose the current into two parts: a magnetic-field-aligned component and a cross-field component. We perform a comprehensive study of the 2D parameter space to understand under what conditions the ground truth can be reproduced uniquely. We find that current oriented perpendicular to the magnetic field has a smaller solution space than the same amount of current oriented parallel to the magnetic field, and so MHS regimes with larger proportions of plasma-related forcing may be a promising avenue toward finding unique magnetic field reconstructions.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab9dfdSolar coronaSolar magnetic fieldsComputational methodsMagnetohydrodynamics |
| spellingShingle | Nat H. Mathews Natasha Flyer Sarah E. Gibson Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness The Astrophysical Journal Solar corona Solar magnetic fields Computational methods Magnetohydrodynamics |
| title | Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness |
| title_full | Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness |
| title_fullStr | Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness |
| title_short | Reconstructing the Coronal Magnetic Field: The Role of Cross-field Currents in Solution Uniqueness |
| title_sort | reconstructing the coronal magnetic field the role of cross field currents in solution uniqueness |
| topic | Solar corona Solar magnetic fields Computational methods Magnetohydrodynamics |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab9dfd |
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