SH23A-2429
SDO/HMI Vector Magnetic Field Observations of the Solar Polar Region
Tuesday, 15 December 2015
Poster Hall (Moscone South)
Xudong Sun1, J Todd Hoeksema1, Yang Liu2, Aimee Ann Norton1, Alberto Sainz Dalda3 and Keiji Hayashi4, (1)Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States, (2)Stanford University, HEPL, Stanford, CA, United States, (3)High Altitude Observatory, Boulder, CO, United States, (4)National Astronomical Observatories, Beijing, China
Abstract:
SDO/HMI is now providing full-disk vector magnetograms of the Sun. Although the instrument is optimized for strong field in active regions, data from the quieter regions can still provide valuable diagnostics if treated carefully. Here we present our first attempt at inferring the vector field in the polar regions. Through deep averaging (96 min) of the Stokes profiles, we find that many unipolar patches reach 5-sigma signal-to-noise ratio, so magnetic field can be inferred with confidence. The inclination of the field in these patches appears to deviate from the radial direction. We discuss the implications for global coronal field topology and our next steps of work.
