helioseismology and asteroseismology in Antarctica

At the University of Rome we have prepared two MOFs (Magneto-Optical Filters),
one working with Potassium vapors (779 nm spectral line) and the other working
with Sodium (589 nm). The two spectral lines bring information about two
different levels of the solar atmosphere. Doppler images taken simultaneously
for few days at the South Pole in collaboration with Dr Stuart Jefferies have
enabled us to determine for the first time the physical conditions, pixel by
pixel, of the solar atmosphere through the propagation time of high frequency
pressure waves . This result was possible also thanks to the financial support
of the National Science Foundation . At Terra Nova Bay, the Rome group has
operated a Potassium MOF during the Antarctic Campaign of 1999. Thanks to the
published results, we could initiate the South Pole collaboration. The 1999
data are available from our Group in Rome. The South Pole data are available on
the web.