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DKIST Resolved Solar Vortices Smaller Than 50 Kilometers
The 4-meter telescope yielded 201 detections with a median equivalent diameter of 38.6 kilometers.
Summary
The 4-meter telescope yielded 201 detections with a median equivalent diameter of 38.6 kilometers.
High-resolution 416-nanometer observations from the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope covered 143 reconstructed frames over about 3.2 minutes. The analysis identified 201 photospheric vortex detections with a median equivalent diameter of 38.6 kilometers and median swirling period of 37.3 seconds. Virtually all were below 50 kilometers, matching a scale predicted by magnetohydrodynamic simulations but previously beyond direct observational reach, according to the authors.
Why it matters
The 4-meter telescope yielded 201 detections with a median equivalent diameter of 38.6 kilometers.
Limits and context
- Virtually all were below 50 kilometers, matching a scale predicted by magnetohydrodynamic simulations but previously beyond direct observational reach, according to the authors.
Key claims
The 4-meter telescope yielded 201 detections with a median equivalent diameter of 38.6 kilometers.
Qualification: Virtually all were below 50 kilometers, matching a scale predicted by magnetohydrodynamic simulations but previously beyond direct observational reach, according to the authors.
Evidence: source-2026-09-25-004
Sources
- arXiv preprint 2609.30051arXiv · primary research
Corrections
No corrections have been recorded for this story.