Statistical Study of Network Jets Observed in the Solar Transition Region: a Comparison Between Coronal Holes and Quiet-Sun Regions

Abstract

Recent IRIS observations have revealed a prevalence of intermittent small-scale jets with apparent speeds of 80--250 kms−1, emanating from small-scale bright regions inside network boundaries of coronal holes. We find that these network jets appear not only in coronal holes but also in quiet-sun regions. Using IRIS 1330 Å (C II) slit-jaw images, we extracted several parameters of these network jets, e.g. apparent speed, length, lifetime, and increase in foot-point brightness. Using several observations, we find that some properties of the jets are very similar, but others are obviously different between the quiet Sun and coronal holes. For example, our study shows that the coronal-hole jets appear to be faster and longer than those in the quiet Sun. This can be directly attributed to a difference in the magnetic configuration of the two regions, with open magnetic field lines rooted in coronal holes and magnetic loops often present in the quiet Sun. We also detected compact bright loops that are most likely transition region loops and are mostly located in quiet-Sun regions. These small loop-like regions are generally devoid of network jets. In spite of different magnetic structures in the coronal hole and quiet Sun in the transition region, there appears to be no substantial difference for the increase in footpoint brightness of the jets, which suggests that the generation mechanism of these network jets is very likely the same in both regions.