On the Weakening of Chromospheric Magnetic Field in Active Regions

Simultaneous measurement of line-of-sight (LOS) magnetic and velocity fields at the photosphere and chromosphere are presented. Fe I line at $\lambda6569$ and $H_{\alpha}$ at $\lambda6563$ are used respectively for deriving the physical parameters at photospheric and chromospheric heights. The LOS magnetic field obtained through the center-of-gravity method show a linear relation between photospheric and chromospheric field for field strengths less than 700 G. But in strong field regions, the LOS magnetic field values derived from $H_{\alpha}$ are much weaker than what one gets from the linear relationship and also from those expected from the extrapolation of the photospheric magnetic field. We discuss in detail the properties of magnetic field observed in $H_{\alpha}$ from the point of view of observed velocity gradients. The bisector analysis of $H_{\alpha}$ Stokes $I$ profiles show larger velocity gradients in those places where strong photospheric magnetic fields are observed. These observations may support the view that the stronger fields diverge faster with height compared to weaker fields.

K. Nagaraju, K. Sankarasubramanian, K. E. Rangarajan · 2008