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HAO flew observers to MLSO to observe the Sun during the solar eclipse
On April 8, 2024, the day of the total solar eclipse, HAO observers Ben Berkey (site manager) and Lisa Perez-Gonzalez flew by helicopter to the Mauna Loa Solar Observatory (MLSO) located at 11,200 feet on the north face of Mauna Loa to observe the Sun’s corona using the MLSO coronagraphs. They had to fly to the site since the road and power lines to Mauna Loa were destroyed by a volcanic eruption on Nov 27, 2022. A generator and battery packs supplied the observatory with the necessary power. Unfortunately, clouds prevented observations on April 8, but Ben and Lisa were able to return on April 9 to capture beautiful observations of the corona with both coronagraphs (see images in story).
Chasing the IR Corona through Solar Eclipse Experiments
The total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, was a great opportunity for the team of HAO, NSO, and NOAA scientists and collaborators to travel to a location on the totality path with the goal of running unique science experiments. Using additional telescopes, binoculars, and outreach materials, we were able to capture the eclipse throughout its phases and share our passion with a very excited local crowd.
New Book! The Problem of Coronal Heating: A Rosetta Stone for Electrodynamic Coupling in Cosmic Plasmas
HAO is pleased to announce the publication of a new and timely book written for young and open-minded scientists just prior to the total eclipse over the USA in April. Senior scientist Philip Judge and co-author James A. Ionson ask why, 8 decades after Bengt Edlen published his seminal article, we still do not have a clear answer to one of the longest-lasting puzzles in all of astronomy. Why is the solar corona so hot?
Latest Research Highlights
Exploring Spatial and Temporal Patterns in the Debrecen Solar Faculae Database
Anett Elek, Marianna B. Korsós, Mausumi Dikpati, Norbert G. Gyenge, Bernadett Belucz, and Robertus Erdélyi, using data from the Debrecen Solar Faculae Database, investigated the spatiotemporal distribution of photospheric faculae between 2010 May 1 and 2014 December 31. Photospheric faculae are markers of the solar magnetic field, appearing as bright regions along the edges of granules on the Sun's surface.
Investigation of the physical mechanism of the formation and evolution of equatorial plasma bubbles during a moderate storm on September 17, 2021
Kun Wu, Liying Qian, Wenbin Wang, Xuguang Cai, Joseph M. Mclnerney investigate in detail the occurrence and evolution of ionospheric equatorial plasma bubbles (EPBs) during a moderate storm on September 17th, 2021, using Global-scale Observation of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) observations and Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model-eXtended (WACCM-X) simulations.
Comprehensive Radiative MHD Simulations of Eruptive Flares above Collisional Polarity Inversion Lines
Matthias Rempel, Georgios Chintzoglou, Mark C. M. Cheung, Yuhong Fan, and Lucia Kleint present a new simulation setup using the MURaM radiative Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) code that allows to study the formation of collisional polarity inversion lines (cPILs) in the photosphere and the coronal response including flares. In this scheme we start with a bipolar sunspot configuration and set the spots on collision course by imposing the appropriate velocity field at the footpoints in the subphotospheric boundary.