Stability of invertered Temperature Loops in the Quiet Corona

HUANG, ZHENGUANG; FRAZIN, RICHARD A.; NUEVO, FEDERICO A.; VÁSQUEZ, ALBERTO M.; IGOR V. SOKOLOV; MANCHESTER, WARD B. IV; GOMBOSI, TAMAS I.

buford, GA, EEUU

Conferencia; SHINE Conference; 2013

Recent investigations of the quiet Corona with the Michigan Loop Diagnostic Technique (MLDT) have revealed the existence of inverted temperature (?down?) loops, in which temperature decreases with height, as well as the usual (?up?) loops, in which the temperature increases with height (Huang et al. 2012). It was shown that the ?down? loops are heavily concentrated at low latitudes and that their population is greatest at solar minimum, with their strongly decreasing with solar activity. Furthermore, the down loops are associated with values of the plasma β greater than about unity, while the up loops are associated with smaller values of β (Nuevo et al. 2013). In the present work, we show the most updated features of ?down? loops and perform 3D simulations of the global corona with the AWSoM model which can lead to ?down? loops. Finally we address the relevant issues of mechanical and thermal stability.