8 July 2025: PIB Summary For UPSC

1. Tiny loops in Solar Corona can unveil Sun’s hidden explosive secrets

(Source – PIB (Press Information Bureau), July, 8, 2025)

Content

Overview

Astronomers at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), in collaboration with NASA, MPS (Germany), and BBSO (USA), have detected miniature plasma loops in the Sun’s chromosphere—thin, short-lived arcs that offer clues to magnetic energy storage and release.

Key Highlights

• Size & Lifecycle:

  • Length: 3,000–4,000 km (comparable to Kashmir–Kanyakumari)

  • Width: < 100 km; exist for only minutes.

• Multi-wavelength Observations:

  • Instruments: Goode Solar Telescope (BBSO), IRIS (NASA), and SDO

  • Revealed behavior across chromosphere, transition region, and corona.

• Spectroscopic Insights:

  • Hα spectral line shows bright arcs. IRIS data display line broadening and non-thermal signatures, indicating magnetic reconnection.

  • Erupting plasma jets are observed at loop tops, hinting at explosive events similar to larger coronal phenomena.

• Thermal Characteristics:

  • Differential Emission Measure analysis indicates plasma temperatures of several million kelvin—unexpected within dense chromospheric layers.

Analysis & Significance

• Enhances our understanding of small-scale magnetic reconnection, a fundamental process for solar dynamics.

• Provides a new observational window into energy transfer in the solar atmosphere, crucial for space weather modeling.

• Validates the need for advanced solar instruments like the National Large Solar Telescope (NLST) to probe micro-scale solar features 

Way Forward

• Implementation of sharper spectroscopy and imaging from upcoming facilities (e.g., NLST) to study loop formation and heating processes.

• Potential to enhance predictive capabilities for solar storms and other space weather events impacting Earth.

Check this out 7 July 2025: PIB Summary For UPSC