NASA Technical Memorandum NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER NASA TM-103555 SOLAR OBSERVATORY REPORT JANUARY - JUNE 1991 By James E. Smith (NASA-TM-I03555) NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT - N92--14958 CENTER SOLAR OBSERVATORY REPORt, JANUARY - JUNE 1991 (NASA) 99 p CSCL 03B Unclas G3/92 0057122 NA_ A National Aeronautics and Space Administration George C. Marshall Space Flight Center MSFC-Form 3190 (Rev. May 1983) i REPORT DOCUMENTAT IoN PAG E FOoMr e.NAop.porToove -doTae Publicreportingburdenforthiscollectionofinformation isestimatedtoaverage1hourDerresponse,includingthetimeforreviewinginstructions,searchingexistingdatasources, gatheringandmaintainingthedataneeded,andcompletingandreviewingthecollectionofinformation, Sendcommentsregardingthisburdenestimateoranyotheraspectofthis collectionofinformation,includingsuggestionsforreducingthisburden,toWashingtonHeadquartersServices,DirectorateforInformationOperationsandReports,1215Jefferson DavisHighway,Suite1204,Arlington,VA 22202-4302,andtotheOfficeofManagementandBudget,PaperworkReductionProject(0704-0188),Washington,DC20503. "1. AGENCY USE ONLY (Leave blank) 2. REPORT DATE 3, REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED October 1991 Technical Memorandum 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Solar Observatory Report - January-June 1991 6. AUTHOR(S) James E. Smith '9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER George C. Marshall Space Flight Center Marshall Space Flight Center, AL 35812 9. SPONSORING /MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSORING /MONITORING AGENCY REPORT NUMBER National Aeronautics and SDaee Administration NASA TM- 103555 Washington, D.C. 20546 11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES Prepared by Space Science Laboratory, Science & Engineering Directorate. 12a. DISTRIBUTION /AVAILABILITY STATEMENT 12b. DISTRIBUTION CODE Unclassified---Unlimited '_13.ABSTRACT (Maximum 200 words) This report provides a description of the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's Solar Vector Magnetograph Facility and gives a summary of its observations and data reduction during January-June 1991. The systems that make up the facility are a magnetograph telescope, an H-alpha telescope, a Questar telescope, and a computer code. 14. SUBJECT TERMS 15. NUMBER OF PAGES 106 Solar Observatory, Vector Magnetograph, H-Alpha Telescope, 16. PRICE CODE Questar Telescope NTIS 17. SECURITYCLASSIFICATION18. SECURITYCLASSIFICATION19. SECURITCYLASSII_ICATION20. 'LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT OFREPORT OFTHISPAGE OFABSTRACT Unlimited gnelassif.ied Unclassified Unclassified NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev 2-89) _qj_ i | b i TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Introduction .................................................. 1 The NASA/MSFC Solar Magnetograph ............................... 1 H-Alpha Facility .............................................. 1 White-Light Telescope .......................................... 2 Computer Center .............................................. 2 Data Description .............................................. 2 Observing Records ............................................. 2 References .................................................. 2 Appendix A:Magnetograph Observations ............................. 5 Appendix B: H-Alpha Observations .................................. 85 Appendix C: White-Light Observations ............................... 93 PRECEDING PAGE BLA_K NOT FILMED Ill mll_ ;_ - _ !_,_-_L ir _ i ii m i E Ew_ _F | m TECHNICAL MEMORANDUM NASA MARSHALL SPACE FLIGHT CENTER SOLAR OBSERVATORY REPORT JANUARY-JUNE 1991 INTRODUCTION This report provides a-'summary of the solar vector magnetic field, H-alpha, and white- light observations made at the NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) Solar Observatory during its daily periods of operation. The MSFC Solar Observatory facilities consist of the Solar Magnetograph, an f/13, 30-cm Cassegrain system with a 3.5-cm image of the Sun housed on top of a 12.8-meter tower, a 12.5-cm Razdow H-alpha telescope housed at the base of the tower, an 18-cm Questar telescope with a full aperture white-light filter mounted at the base of the tower, a 30-cm Cassegrain telescope located in a second metal dome, and a 16.5-cm H-alpha telescope mounted on side of the Solar Vector Magnetograph. A concrete block building provides office space, a darkroom for developing film and performing optical testing, a workshop, video displays, and a computer facility for data reduction. THE NASA/MSFC SOLAR MAGNETOGRAPH The NASA/MSFC Solar Magnetograph is an electro-optical instrument designed to provide information on the states of linear andcircular polarization of a narrow wavelength interval (1/8 J0 of the 525.022 nm (5250.22 ]k) solar absorption line over a 5.75 x 5.75 arc minute field of view with a spatial resolution of 2.7 arc seconds and a time resolution of ap- proximately 6 minutes for a complete vector magnetogram with a sensitivity of 1/1000. A complete description of the instrument and its calibration and performance characteristics can be found in references 1 and 3. H-ALPHA FACILITY The facility houses a 12.5 cm aperture, Razdow H-alpha telescope system. This system consists of an f/8, l-meter focal length, 5-inch telescope which produces a 16 mm diameter image at the prime focus. The spectral selection is provided by a Halle-Lyot birefringent filter with a 0.5 J_ bandpass centered:! at H-alpha and tunable within 4- 1J_. The telescope is equipped with standard mount, drive, and guidance systems, and it provides eyepiece viewing as well as film and TV scan output. The 16.5-cm H-alpha telescope consists of a telecentdc Cassegralnian (f/28) objective, Fabry-Perot filter, relay optics, vidicon camera, and f'dm camera. It provides a 4.4-16 arc minute variable field of view, narrow spectral bandwidth, and high spatial resolution. WHITE-LIGHTTELESCOPE 2An 18-cmQuestartelescopewithafull aperturewhite-lightprefilterisalsoavailablefor viewingorphotographingsunspotsand/orotherwhite-lightsolarfeatures. COMPUTERCENTER ThedatareductioncapabilityConsistsofaPDP11/73computerwith 2megabytes memory,controlterminals,colorgraphicsdisplaymonitor,lineprinter,twodisksystemsa, nda magnetictaperecorder.ThedataacquisifioncomputerisaPDP11/23with2megabytesmem- ory'=andisu_ tocontrolihe datastoraget,herealtimeanalysis,andtheope-ra_nofthevector magnetographsystem.ThesystemhardwareiscontrolledbyanIntelmicrocomptuerwithaZ80 processor.Afterreceivingcomm_dsfromthePDP11/23,theIntelconfiguresthehardwareto givenspecificsandthenacquiresthedata.TheIntelcontrolsthetimingof thesolidstatecamera systemt,hepol_-zin-goptics,_dthe datatransferintotemporarymemory. DATA DESCRIPTION The MSFC Vector Magneto_graph system records the Sun's photospheric magnetic field over an approximately 6 x 6 arc minute square field of view. The normal mode of operation produces magnetograms with a 128 x 128 data array, yielding a pixel size of 2.8 arc second resolution. It takes about 6 minutes to produce one complete vector set. The data can then be displayed in various contour plots showing the field gradients and directions. i OBSERVING RECORDS .... _- __:-_ ..... ----. ........ -.... ",=.S,__ _ .... The MSFC magnetograph observations are sumafi_ in Appendix A. H-alpha observir_g records are summarized in Appendix B, _ite-Iight observing records are summarized in REFERENCES , Hagyard, M. J., Cumings, N. P., West, E. A., and Smith, J. E., "The MSFC Solar Vector Magnetograph," Solar Phys. 80, 33 (1982). 2. Hagyard, M. J., Cumings, N. P., and West, E. A., Proceedings of Kunming Workshop on Solar Physics and Interplanetary TravelHn[ Phenomena, C. De Jager and Chen Biao, eds., 1216 (1985). .... 3. Hagyard, M. J.' west, E. A., Gary, G. A., and Smith, J. E., "Coaligned Observations of Solar Magnetic Fields at Different Heights--MSFC Center Director's Discretionary Fund Final Report(Project 88-10)," NASA TM,103516, p. 2 (1990). 2 Abbreviations used in the records are as follows: Region Four digits mean Boulder region number 0-represents calibration 1-represents studies at the Sun center 2-represents studies of any quiet area 3-represents studies of coronal holes _.P Polarimeter waveplate position 1-represents position to analyze circularly polarized light 2-represents position to analyze linearly polarized light parallel to the analyzer 3-represents position to analyze linearly polarized light 45° to the analyzer Enh Number of image enhancements FP Ziess filter position CF Center f'flter position of sunspot C.T. Correlation tracker 0-represents off 1-represents on ODA Optical disk medium in which the data are stored 3 z r_ ::::: z m F i EJlm --L | _b i z-- |