Observed damping of the slow magnetoacoustic mode

Abstract

Spectroscopic and stereoscopic imaging observations of slow magnetoacoustic wave propagation within a coronal loop are investigated to determine the decay length scale of the slow magnetoacoustic mode in three dimensions and the density profile within the loop system. The slow wave is found to have an e-folding decay length scale of 20,000+4000- 3000 km with a uniform density profile along the loop base. These observations place quantitative constraints on the modeling of wave propagation within coronal loops. Theoretical forward modeling suggests that magnetic field line divergence is the dominant damping factor and thermal conduction is insufficient, given the observed parameters of the coronal loop temperature, density, and wave mode period. © 2011. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.