@article{DenkerHeibelRendteletal.2016, author = {Denker, Carsten and Heibel, C. and Rendtel, J. and Arlt, K. and Balthasar, H. and Diercke, Andrea and Gonzalez Manrique, Sergio Javier and Hofmann, A. and Kuckein, Christoph and {\"O}nel, H. and Valliappan, Senthamizh Pavai and Staude, J. and Verma, Meetu}, title = {Solar physics at the Einstein Tower}, series = {Astronomische Nachrichten = Astronomical notes}, volume = {337}, journal = {Astronomische Nachrichten = Astronomical notes}, publisher = {Wiley-VCH}, address = {Weinheim}, issn = {0004-6337}, doi = {10.1002/asna.201612442}, pages = {1105 -- 1113}, year = {2016}, language = {en} } @article{VermaDenkerBalthasaretal.2016, author = {Verma, Meetu and Denker, Carsten and Balthasar, H. and Kuckein, Christoph and Gonz{\´a}lez Manrique, Sergio Javier and Sobotka, M. and Gonzalez, N. Bello and Hoch, S. and Diercke, Andrea and Kummerow, Philipp and Berkefeld, T. and Collados Vera, M. and Feller, A. and Hofmann, A. and Kneer, F. and Lagg, A. and L{\"o}hner-B{\"o}ttcher, J. and Nicklas, H. and Pastor Yabar, A. and Schlichenmaier, R. and Schmidt, D. and Schmidt, W. and Schubert, M. and Sigwarth, M. and Solanki, S. K. and Soltau, D. and Staude, J. and Strassmeier, Klaus G. and Volkmer, R. and von der L{\"u}he, O. and Waldmann, T.}, title = {Horizontal flow fields in and around a small active region The transition period between flux emergence and decay}, series = {Polymers}, volume = {596}, journal = {Polymers}, publisher = {EDP Sciences}, address = {Les Ulis}, issn = {1432-0746}, doi = {10.1051/0004-6361/201628380}, pages = {12}, year = {2016}, abstract = {Context. The solar magnetic field is responsible for all aspects of solar activity. Thus, emergence of magnetic flux at the surface is the first manifestation of the ensuing solar activity. Aims. Combining high-resolution and synoptic observations aims to provide a comprehensive description of flux emergence at photospheric level and of the growth process that eventually leads to a mature active region. Methods. The small active region NOAA 12118 emerged on 2014 July 17 and was observed one day later with the 1.5-m GREGOR solar telescope on 2014 July 18. High-resolution time-series of blue continuum and G-band images acquired in the blue imaging channel (BIC) of the GREGOR Fabry-Perot Interferometer (GFPI) were complemented by synoptic line-of-sight magnetograms and continuum images obtained with the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) onboard the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). Horizontal proper motions and horizontal plasma velocities were computed with local correlation tracking (LCT) and the differential affine velocity estimator (DAVE), respectively. Morphological image processing was employed to measure the photometric and magnetic area, magnetic flux, and the separation profile of the emerging flux region during its evolution. Results. The computed growth rates for photometric area, magnetic area, and magnetic flux are about twice as high as the respective decay rates. The space-time diagram using HMI magnetograms of five days provides a comprehensive view of growth and decay. It traces a leaf-like structure, which is determined by the initial separation of the two polarities, a rapid expansion phase, a time when the spread stalls, and a period when the region slowly shrinks again. The separation rate of 0.26 km s(-1) is highest in the initial stage, and it decreases when the separation comes to a halt. Horizontal plasma velocities computed at four evolutionary stages indicate a changing pattern of inflows. In LCT maps we find persistent flow patterns such as outward motions in the outer part of the two major pores, a diverging feature near the trailing pore marking the site of upwelling plasma and flux emergence, and low velocities in the interior of dark pores. We detected many elongated rapidly expanding granules between the two major polarities, with dimensions twice as large as the normal granules.}, language = {en} } @article{VermaDenkerBalthasaretal.2018, author = {Verma, Meetu and Denker, Carsten and Balthasar, H. and Kuckein, Christoph and Rezaei, R. and Sobotka, Michal and Deng, N. and Wang, Haimin and Tritschler, A. and Collados, M. and Diercke, Andrea and Gonz{\´a}lez Manrique, Sergio Javier}, title = {High-resolution imaging and near-infrared spectroscopy of penumbral decay}, series = {Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal}, volume = {614}, journal = {Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal}, publisher = {EDP Sciences}, address = {Les Ulis}, issn = {1432-0746}, doi = {10.1051/0004-6361/201731801}, pages = {14}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Aims. Combining high-resolution spectropolarimetric and imaging data is key to understanding the decay process of sunspots as it allows us to scrutinize the velocity and magnetic fields of sunspots and their surroundings. Methods. Active region NOAA 12597 was observed on 2016 September 24 with the 1.5-meter GREGOR solar telescope using high-spatial-resolution imaging as well as imaging spectroscopy and near-infrared (NIR) spectropolarimetry. Horizontal proper motions were estimated with local correlation tracking, whereas line-of-sight (LOS) velocities were computed with spectral line fitting methods. The magnetic field properties were inferred with the "Stokes Inversions based on Response functions" (SIR) code for the Si I and Ca I NIR lines. Results. At the time of the GREGOR observations, the leading sunspot had two light bridges indicating the onset of its decay. One of the light bridges disappeared, and an elongated, dark umbral core at its edge appeared in a decaying penumbral sector facing the newly emerging flux. The flow and magnetic field properties of this penumbral sector exhibited weak Evershed flow, moat flow, and horizontal magnetic field. The penumbral gap adjacent to the elongated umbral core and the penumbra in that penumbral sector displayed LOS velocities similar to granulation. The separating polarities of a new flux system interacted with the leading and central part of the already established active region. As a consequence, the leading spot rotated 55 degrees clockwise over 12 h. Conclusions. In the high-resolution observations of a decaying sunspot, the penumbral filaments facing the flux emergence site contained a darkened area resembling an umbral core filled with umbral dots. This umbral core had velocity and magnetic field properties similar to the sunspot umbra. This implies that the horizontal magnetic fields in the decaying penumbra became vertical as observed in flare-induced rapid penumbral decay, but on a very different time-scale.}, language = {en} } @article{DenkerKuckeinVermaetal.2018, author = {Denker, Carsten and Kuckein, Christoph and Verma, Meetu and Manrique Gonzalez, Sergio Javier Gonzalez and Diercke, Andrea and Enke, Harry and Klar, Jochen and Balthasar, Horst and Louis, Rohan E. and Dineva, Ekaterina}, title = {High-cadence Imaging and Imaging Spectroscopy at the GREGOR Solar Telescope-A Collaborative Research Environment for High-resolution Solar Physics}, series = {The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Supplement series}, volume = {236}, journal = {The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Supplement series}, number = {1}, publisher = {IOP Publ. Ltd.}, address = {Bristol}, issn = {0067-0049}, doi = {10.3847/1538-4365/aab773}, pages = {12}, year = {2018}, abstract = {In high-resolution solar physics, the volume and complexity of photometric, spectroscopic, and polarimetric ground-based data significantly increased in the last decade, reaching data acquisition rates of terabytes per hour. This is driven by the desire to capture fast processes on the Sun and the necessity for short exposure times "freezing" the atmospheric seeing, thus enabling ex post facto image restoration. Consequently, large-format and high-cadence detectors are nowadays used in solar observations to facilitate image restoration. Based on our experience during the "early science" phase with the 1.5 m GREGOR solar telescope (2014-2015) and the subsequent transition to routine observations in 2016, we describe data collection and data management tailored toward image restoration and imaging spectroscopy. We outline our approaches regarding data processing, analysis, and archiving for two of GREGOR's post-focus instruments (see http://gregor.aip.de), i.e., the GREGOR Fabry-P{\´e}rot Interferometer (GFPI) and the newly installed High-Resolution Fast Imager (HiFI). The heterogeneous and complex nature of multidimensional data arising from high-resolution solar observations provides an intriguing but also a challenging example for "big data" in astronomy. The big data challenge has two aspects: (1) establishing a workflow for publishing the data for the whole community and beyond and (2) creating a collaborative research environment (CRE), where computationally intense data and postprocessing tools are colocated and collaborative work is enabled for scientists of multiple institutes. This requires either collaboration with a data center or frameworks and databases capable of dealing with huge data sets based on virtual observatory (VO) and other community standards and procedures.}, language = {en} } @article{KuckeinDierckeGonzalezManriqueetal.2017, author = {Kuckein, Christoph and Diercke, Andrea and Gonz{\´a}lez Manrique, Sergio Javier and Verma, Meetu and Loehner-Boettcher, Johannes and Socas-Navarro, H. and Balthasar, Horst and Sobotka, M. and Denker, Carsten}, title = {Ca II 8542 angstrom brightenings induced by a solar microflare}, series = {Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal}, volume = {608}, journal = {Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal}, publisher = {EDP Sciences}, address = {Les Ulis}, issn = {1432-0746}, doi = {10.1051/0004-6361/201731319}, pages = {13}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Aims. We study small-scale brightenings in Ca II 8542 angstrom line-core images to determine their nature and effect on localized heating and mass transfer in active regions. Methods. High-resolution two-dimensional spectroscopic observations of a solar active region in the near-infrared Ca II 8542 angstrom line were acquired with the GREGOR Fabry-Perot Interferometer attached to the 1.5-m GREGOR telescope. Inversions of the spectra were carried out using the NICOLE code to infer temperatures and line-of-sight (LOS) velocities. Response functions of the Ca II line were computed for temperature and LOS velocity variations. Filtergrams of the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and magnetograms of the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) were coaligned to match the ground-based observations and to follow the Ca II brightenings along all available layers of the atmosphere. Results. We identified three brightenings of sizes up to 2 ' x 2 ' that appeared in the Ca II 8542 angstrom line-core images. Their lifetimes were at least 1.5 min. We found evidence that the brightenings belonged to the footpoints of a microflare (MF). The properties of the observed brightenings disqualified the scenarios of Ellerman bombs or Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) bombs. However, this MF shared some common properties with flaring active-region fibrils or flaring arch filaments (FAFs): (1) FAFs and MFs are both apparent in chromospheric and coronal layers according to the AIA channels; and (2) both show flaring arches with lifetimes of about 3.0-3.5 min and lengths of similar to 20 ' next to the brightenings. The inversions revealed heating by 600 K at the footpoint location in the ambient chromosphere during the impulsive phase. Connecting the footpoints, a dark filamentary structure appeared in the Ca II line-core images. Before the start of the MF, the spectra of this structure already indicated average blueshifts, meaning upward motions of the plasma along the LOS. During the impulsive phase, these velocities increased up to -2.2 km s(-1). The structure did not disappear during the observations. Downflows dominated at the footpoints. However, in the upper photosphere, slight upflows occurred during the impulsive phase. Hence, bidirectional flows are present in the footpoints of the MF.}, language = {en} }