Damping and power spectra of quasi-periodic intensity disturbances above a solar polar coronal hole

Abstract

We study intensity disturbances above a solar polar coronal hole that can be seen in the AIA 171 Å and 193 Å passbands, aiming to provide more insights into their physical nature. The damping and power spectra of the intensity disturbances with frequencies from 0.07 mHz to 10.5 mHz are investigated. The damping of the intensity disturbances tends to be stronger at lower frequencies, and their damping behavior below 980 (for comparison, the limb is at 945) is different from what happens above. No significant difference is found between the damping of the intensity disturbances in the AIA 171 Å and that in the AIA 193 Å. The indices of the power spectra of the intensity disturbances are found to be slightly smaller in the AIA 171 Å than in the AIA 193 Å, but the difference is within one standard deviation. An additional enhanced component is present in the power spectra in a period range of 8-40 min at lower heights. The power spectra of a spicule is highly correlated with its associated intensity disturbance, which suggests that the power spectra of the intensity disturbances might be a mixture of spicules and wave activities. We suggest that each intensity disturbance in the polar coronal hole is possibly a series of independent slow magnetoacoustic waves triggered by spicular activities.