Context:

Recently, researchers examined an active sunspot with complex features from the Kodaikonal Tower Tunnel telescope.

Methodology adopted in the study:

• To understand the physical mechanisms behind these processes, measurements of magnetic fields at different heights of the solar atmosphere are important. 
• The strength of the magnetic field can be inferred by precise measurements of the spectral line intensities across the Sun in full polarization. 
• Simultaneous multiline spectropolarimetry is an observational technique that captures this magnetic field at different layers of the solar atmosphere. 
• Recent studies have demonstrated this above technique's capability to detail the magnetic structure of sunspots, umbral flashes, and chromospheric variations during solar flares.

Key Findings of the study:

• This study presents a new way to probe deeper into the Sun’s secrets by studying the magnetic field at different layers of the solar atmosphere using data from the Kodaikanal Tower Tunnel Telescope.  
• The study highlights the Hydrogen-alpha (Hα) line's effectiveness as a chromospheric diagnostic tool, particularly when the other spectral lines, such as Calcium II 8542 Å, probe deeper layers of the solar atmosphere.
• The study underscores the necessity for further spectropolarimetric observations of the Hα line using advanced telescopes with superior spatial and spectral resolution.

Kodaikanal Tower Telescope (KTT):

• The KTT is a powerful instrument used for studying the sun and it is located in Kodaikanal, India, and was established in 1899.
• The Kodaikanal Solar Observatory (KoSO), operated by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, is known for the discovery of the Evershed Effect in 1909. 

The Kodaikanal Tower Telescope has a special design with three mirrors.

• The first mirror follows the Sun as it moves across the sky. 
• The second mirror sends the sunlight straight down.
• The third mirror makes the sunlight go sideways. This kind of setup, where the first mirror moves to follow the Sun, is called a Coelostat.
• A special lens in the telescope makes the sunlight focus at a distance of 36 meters. This lens makes the Sun’s image look bigger and clearer. 
• Scientists use this telescope to study the Sun’s magnetic field.
• The KTT helps scientists study many aspects of the Sun, such as: Sunspots, Solar Flares, Coronal Mass Ejections.

Other telescopes for viewing the sun:

1. Ground-based solar telescopes: The Swedish 1-meter Solar Telescope (SST), The Kodaikanal Solar Observatory, The Richard B. Dunn Solar Telescope (DST), The Mount Wilson Observatory.

2. Space-based solar telescopes: The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), Hinode, The Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO), The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), The Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS).