The velocities of intranetwork and network magnetic fields

Abstract

We analyzed two sequences of quiet-Sun magnetograms obtained on June 4, 1992 and July 28, 1994. Both were observed during excellent seeing conditions such that the weak intranetwork (IN) fields are observed clearly during the entire periods. Using the local correlation tracking technique, we derived the horizontal velocity fields of IN and network magnetic fields. They consist of two components: (1) radial divergence flows which move IN fields from the network interior to the boundaries, and (2) lateral flows which move along the network boundaries and converge toward stronger magnetic elements. Furthermore, we constructed divergence maps based on horizonal velocities, which are a good representation of the vertical velocities of supergranules. For the June 4, 1992 data, the enhanced network area in the field of view has twice the flux density, 10% higher supergranular velocity and 20% larger cell sizes than the quiet, unenhanced network area. Based on the number densities and flow velocities of IN fields derived in this paper and a previous paper (Wang et al., 1995), we estimate that the lower limit of total energy released from the recycling of IN fields is 1.2 × 10²⁸ erg s⁻¹, which is comparable to the energy required for coronal heating.

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