The most dangerous experiment in the world Scientists simulate the conditions of the solar corona in the laboratory

The new laboratory model confirmed - for the first time experimentally - the expected behavior of Alfvn waves, suggesting that the theory that explains why the solar corona is warming may be correct.

A research team from the German laboratories "Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf" managed - for the first time - to accurately simulate the conditions under the solar corona, whose temperature in some areas is more than one million degrees Celsius, which It may contribute to understanding the most important secrets of the sun so far.

According to the study , which was published in the journal "Physical Review Letters" and announced by the research facility in a press release issued on January 3, this simulation used pulsed magnetic fields of a maximum of about 100 Tesla, which is equal to About two million times the strength of the Earth's magnetic field.

On the other hand, the metal used in the experiment (alkaline rubidium) was placed in a sturdy stainless steel container, and its temperature was raised until it became completely soluble as water, after which the magnetic pulses passed over it.

The goal of the experiment - according to the new study - is to simulate what is known as the "magnetic canopy", which is the area under the solar corona that scientists believe is the reason for its heating.

Pot and stove puzzle

The surface temperature of the sun is equal to about 6 thousand degrees Celsius, but despite this, the solar corona, which is located above the body of the sun, reaches a temperature of about one million degrees Celsius, and that has always been the biggest secret in the physics of the sun; It is like the temperature of the pot being higher than the temperature of the stove.

Scientists believe that the magnetic canopy is the reason for raising the temperature of the solar corona, and that canopy contains two types of waves, the first is called "Alfvén waves", which is a specific vibration of the sun's substance (plasma) in conjunction with its magnetic field.

Two thousand waves travel at the same speed as the second type of wave, sound waves from the sun, and this proportionality in speed allows them to exchange energy and matter together, causing the solar corona to heat up.

According to the new study, this new laboratory model has confirmed - for the first time in an experimental way - the theoretically expected behavior of waves called Alfvian waves, which indicates that the theory that explains the cause of the high temperature of the solar corona may be correct.

But despite this, we do not yet have direct confirmation of this mechanism, and a set of data may soon be issued from the “Parker” probe, which is now standing inside the heliosphere at a distance of 8 million kilometers from the sun’s body, to help solve this mystery in a way. Final.