On the outer boundary of the sunspot penumbra

Abstract

Comparison of photographic observations and vector-magnetograph measurements demonstrate that the outer boundary of the sunspot penumbra - even in complex sunspot groups - closely follows the 0.075 T iso-gauss line of the total value of the magnetic field, corresponding approximately to the equipartition value in the photosphere. Radio observations also show this feature. The thick penumbra model with interchange convection (Jahn and Schmidt, 1994) gives the best explanation of the penumbral structure.