![ed dowdee sun corona relativity ed dowdee sun corona relativity](https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/static/img/downloadables/Eclipse_Polarization_of_SolarCorona.jpg)
In both the first CoMP wave paper (2007) and my papers, there was an odd signal noticed in the power spectrum of the velocity measurements. We worked together on two papers, one of which made some key discoveries about their behaviour in coronal holes, which are the source regions of the solar wind ( Morton et al., Nature Comms. Working with Steve, I saw the potential for making some great insights into the nature of Alfvénic waves in the corona. Not that I knew it then, but this move pretty much set my research path for the next 5 years. I approached Steve at HAO with a view of paying him a visit and learning about CoMP.
![ed dowdee sun corona relativity ed dowdee sun corona relativity](https://www2.hao.ucar.edu/sites/default/files/images/education/slides/slide20.jpeg)
In 2013, I had obtained my own fellowship and thought that exploring coronal Alfvenic waves with CoMP was a great opportunity. Despite this, many researchers chose to explore that fantastic data from SDO, and CoMP was somewhat overlooked. However, SDO has not yet been able to match CoMP’s power to investigate these Alfvénic waves. It started taking daily observations of the corona and amassed a wealth of superb data.Ģ010 also saw the launch of the NASA Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO), an $850 million spacecraft that has helped revolutionise our understanding of the Sun.
![ed dowdee sun corona relativity ed dowdee sun corona relativity](https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/static/img/historical-eclipse-image-archive/2009_00.jpg)
However, major modifications where required to the instrument and only in 2010 was CoMP deployed. During this time, CoMP was relocated to Hawaii in order to start regular observations at the Mauna Loa Solar Observatory and gain the benefit of the coronal-observing friendly skies (less scattering at infrared wavelengths). While my PhD was mainly a theoretical investigation of waves in the Sun’s atmosphere, in my first Post-Doc position in 2011 I switched to the analysis of observational data. This was a big discovery for the community and demonstrated what CoMP could achieve.Īround the time of this discovery I started my PhD, and I was inspired by the CoMP results.
![ed dowdee sun corona relativity ed dowdee sun corona relativity](https://skyandtelescope.org/wp-content/uploads/R-CrB-finder-August-768x686.jpg)
The waves are usually thought to be generated by the turbulent convection cells in the photosphere crashing into the magnetic field. This motion can be interpreted as Alfvénic waves, which are essentially magnetic waves that transport energy around the Sun’s atmosphere, and are one of the front runners to explain the coronal heating. It was first deployed at Sacramento Peak in 2004 and required two years of fine-tuning before it made its first key discovery – that the Sun’s magnetic field was constantly shaking ( Tomczyk et al., 2007 Science). Originally built for around $1.4 million dollars, the instrument is relatively cheap by astronomy standards. Although, Steve Tomczyk, the lead instrument scientist for CoMP, also knew it would be a great tool to measure the velocities of the coronal gas. It focuses on the light emitted from the highly ionised iron, which is in the infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The Coronal Multichannel Polarimeter (or CoMP) was originally designed by scientists at the High Altitude Observatory as a coronagraphic spectropolarimeter, which means it was built to block the bright light from the Sun’s disk to measure the signatures of the Sun’s magnetic field in the corona.