Measuring vector magnetic fields in solar prominences

TL;DR

This paper reports spectropolarimetric measurements of a solar prominence's magnetic field using the He I 1083.0 nm line, applying the HAZEL inversion to determine the magnetic field vector.

Contribution

It presents the first detailed magnetic field measurements of a quiescent solar prominence using spectropolarimetry and the HAZEL inversion code.

Findings

Magnetic field strength and orientation were successfully derived.

The prominence's magnetic field shows a specific configuration.

The Zeeman, Hanle, and atomic polarization effects were characterized.

Abstract

We present spectropolarimetric observations in the He I 1083.0 nm multiplet of a quiescent, hedgerow solar prominence. The data were taken with the Tenerife Infrared Polarimeter attached to the German Vacuum Tower Telescope at the Observatorio del Teide (Tenerife; Canary Islands; Spain). The observed He I circular and linear polarization signals are dominated by the Zeeman effect and by atomic level polarization and the Hanle effect, respectively. These observables are sensitive to the strength and orientation of the magnetic field vector at each spatial point of the field of view. We determine the magnetic field vector of the prominence by applying the HAZEL inversion code to the observed Stokes profiles. We briefly discuss the retrieved magnetic field vector configuration.