A Statistical Inference Method for Interpreting the CLASP Observations
arXiv:1808.02725 · doi:10.3847/1538-4357/aad910
Abstract
On 3rd September 2015, the Chromospheric Lyman-Alpha SpectroPolarimeter (CLASP) successfully measured the linear polarization produced by scattering processes in the hydrogen Lyman-$α$ line of the solar disk radiation, revealing conspicuous spatial variations in the $Q/I$ and $U/I$ signals. Via the Hanle effect the line-center $Q/I$ and $U/I$ amplitudes encode information on the magnetic field of the chromosphere-corona transition region (TR), but they are also sensitive to the three-dimensional structure of this corrugated interface region. With the help of a simple line formation model, here we propose a statistical inference method for interpreting the Lyman-$α$ line-center polarization observed by CLASP.
Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal