On the Orientation of Magnetic Fields in Quiescent Prominences

Abstract

The longitudinal component of the magnetic field in quiescent prominences has been measured directly with magnetographs using the Zeeman effect on selected spectral lines (Rust, 1966; Ioshpa, 1968; Harvey, 1969). We know that as a general rule the magnetic field enters the, largely-vertical, sheet-like quiescent prominence on one side and exits on the other. The field traverses the prominence plasma with components both along and at right angles to the long axis of the prominence. It is the purpose of this paper to describe observations that may indicate the relative importance of the two components of the magnetic field, and to derive a distribution function for the magnetic field vectors.