Unlocking the Secrets of Atmospheric Gravity Waves on the Quiet Sun: Observational Insights

Atmospheric Gravity Waves (AGWs) are low-frequency waves generated abundantly by turbulent convection and overshoot on the Sun. These omnipresent, buoyancy-driven waves (widely known as internal gravity waves) propagate at an oblique angle throughout the stably-stratified lower solar atmosphere. In addition to agents for energy transfer, AGWs are sensitive to atmospheric parameters, such as radiative damping and the magnetic field, highlighting their diagnostic potential. Previous observations of AGWs were primarily constrained to the quiet Sun’s disk center. Thus, we lack observational insight into their predicted large horizontal velocities and susceptibility to the magnetic field. Using high-resolution, multi-wavelength IBIS observations from the Dunn Solar Telescope and co-aligned SDO data, we investigate the characteristics of AGWs throughout the lower solar atmosphere on the quiet Sun from disk center to the solar limb and around active regions. We detect propagating AGWs carrying energy upward at the expected spatial and temporal scales using simultaneously observed line core Doppler velocity and intensity fluctuations. This study aims to comprehensively characterize these waves throughout the lower solar atmosphere, enabling a deeper understanding of their diagnostic potential.