Tezpur University study uncover how solar oscillations drive energy through the sun

Tezpur, Feb 10: Researchers from Tezpur University have made a significant breakthrough in understanding how energy travels through the Sun – an advance that could improve predictions of solar storms affecting satellites, power grids and communication systems on Earth.

The study, published in The Astrophysical Journal, was conducted by Souvik Das, Senior Research Fellow (DST-INSPIRE), under the supervision of Prof Pralay Kumar Karmakar of the Department of Physics.

The Sun constantly vibrates due to sound-like waves known as five-minute solar oscillations, making it behave like a giant ringing bell. Scientists have long suspected that these oscillations help transport energy from the solar surface into its atmosphere, but the exact process has remained unclear.

The Tezpur University team developed an advanced theoretical model that includes both low- and high-energy electrons present in solar plasma. The research shows that fast-moving high-energy particles, known as non-thermal electrons, can significantly reshape these oscillations and influence how energy is transported into the Sun’s lower atmosphere.

The findings reveal that stronger non-thermal effects weaken certain solar waves, particularly pressure-driven p-mode oscillations. As the number of high-energy electrons increases, wave activity decreases, suggesting that energetic particles can suppress some waves while redistributing acoustic energy in the Sun’s atmosphere.

This redistributed energy may help power spicules, microspicules and atmospheric waves, contributing to the heating of the Sun’s chromosphere and corona – its outer layers that are far hotter than the visible surface.

“Our results show that some fast oscillations on the Sun’s surface can carry much more energy than previously thought, while strong non-thermal effects can suppress others, helping us better understand how energy is balanced in the Sun’s atmosphere,” said Souvik Das.

The researchers also proposed a new hybrid decay model explaining how this energy gradually fades as it travels upward through the Sun’s atmosphere. Their predictions were validated using data from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory and Japan’s Hinode Solar Optical Telescope.

Prof Karmakar noted that the work successfully bridges theoretical modelling with real observational evidence and offers new insights into solar energy transport – an essential step toward better forecasting space weather.