Vortex waves in sunspots

¹ IRAP–CNRS UMR 5277, 14 Av. E. Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
e-mail: Arturo.LopezAriste@irap.omp.eu
² Université de Toulouse, UPS-OMP, Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie, 31400 Toulouse, France
³ High Altitude Observatory (NCAR). 3080 Center Green Dr. Boulder, CO 80301, USA
⁴ Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias. C/ Vía Láctea s/n, 38200 La Laguna, Spain
⁵ Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna, 38205 La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain

Received: 18 May 2015
Accepted: 1 April 2016

Abstract

Context. Waves in the magnetized solar atmosphere are one of the favourite means of transferring and depositing energy into the solar corona. The study of waves brings information not just on the dynamics of the magnetized plasma, but also on the possible ways in which the corona is heated.

Aims. The identification and analysis of the phase singularities or dislocations provide us with a complementary approach to the magnetoacoustic and Aflvén waves propagating in the solar atmosphere. They allow us to identify individual wave modes, shedding light on the probability of excitation or the nature of the triggering mechanism.

Methods. We use a time series of Doppler shifts measured in two spectral lines, filtered around the three-minute period region. The data show a propagating magnetoacoustic slow mode with several dislocations and, in particular, a vortex line. We study under what conditions the different wave modes propagating in the umbra can generate the observed dislocations.

Results. The observed dislocations can be fully interpreted as a sequence of sausage and kink modes excited sequentially on average during 15 min. Kink and sausage modes appear to be excited independently and sequentially. The transition from one to the other lasts less than three minutes. During the transition we observe and model the appearance of superoscillations inducing large phase gradients and phase mixing.

Conclusions. The analysis of the observed wave dislocations leads us to the identification of the propagating wave modes in umbrae. The identification in the data of superoscillatory regions during the transition from one mode to the other may be an important indicator of the location of wave dissipation.