Simulation of the Formation of a Solar Active Region

TL;DR

This paper presents a detailed radiative magnetohydrodynamics simulation of solar active region formation, revealing the complex magnetic flux emergence process and associated surface phenomena like sunspots and light bridges.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive simulation capturing the rise of magnetic flux from deep convection zone to surface, illustrating the formation of active regions and related surface features.

Findings

Magnetic flux rises from 7.5 Mm depth with horizontal expansion.

Formation of opposite polarity spots from coalescing magnetic elements.

Magnetoconvective processes underlie sunspot features like umbral dots and light bridges.

Abstract

We present a radiative magnetohydrodynamics simulation of the formation of an Active Region on the solar surface. The simulation models the rise of a buoyant magnetic flux bundle from a depth of 7.5 Mm in the convection zone up into the solar photosphere. The rise of the magnetic plasma in the convection zone is accompanied by predominantly horizontal expansion. Such an expansion leads to a scaling relation between the plasma density and the magnetic field strength such that $B\propto\varrho^{1/2}$. The emergence of magnetic flux into the photosphere appears as a complex magnetic pattern, which results from the interaction of the rising magnetic field with the turbulent convective flows. Small-scale magnetic elements at the surface first appear, followed by their gradual coalescence into larger magnetic concentrations, which eventually results in the formation of a pair of opposite polarity spots. Although the mean flow pattern in the vicinity of the developing spots is directed radially outward, correlations between the magnetic field and velocity field fluctuations allow the spots to accumulate flux. Such correlations result from the Lorentz-force driven, counter-streaming motion of opposite-polarity fragments. The formation of the simulated Active Region is accompanied by transient light bridges between umbrae and umbral dots. Together with recent sunspot modeling, this work highlights the common magnetoconvective origin of umbral dots, light bridges and penumbral filaments.