Related papers: Deciphering Solar Magnetic Activity: Spotting Sola…
We have analyzed available full-disc data from the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) on board SoHO using the "ring diagram" technique to determine the behavior of solar meridional flows over solar cycle 23 in the outer 2% of the solar radius.…
The present paper reviews results derived from statistical studies on solar activity indices. The prolonged minimum phase of cycle 23 raised the question of peculiarities inherent in cycle 23. The most important solar activity index is the…
Sunspots are a canonical marker of the Sun's internal magnetic field which flips polarity every ~22-years. The principal variation of sunspots, an ~11-year variation in number, modulates the amount of magnetic field that pierces the solar…
Using both wavelet and Fourier analysis, a study has been undertaken of the changes in the quasi-periodic variations in solar photospheric fields in the build-up to one of the deepest solar minima experienced in the past 100 years. This…
We investigate periodicities in mean heliographic latitudes of sunspot groups, called active latitudes, for the last six complete solar cycles (1945-2008). For this purpose, the Multi Taper Method and Morlet Wavelet analysis methods were…
After decades of effort, the solar activity cycle is exceptionally well characterized but it remains poorly understood. Pioneering work at the Mount Wilson Observatory demonstrated that other sun-like stars also show regular activity…
The Sun's activity cycle governs the radiation, particle and magnetic flux in the heliosphere creating hazardous space weather. Decadal-scale variations define space climate and force the Earth's atmosphere. However, predicting the solar…
The dynamic activity of the Sun -- sustained by a magnetohydrodynamic dynamo mechanism working in its interior -- modulates the electromagnetic, particulate and radiative environment in space. While solar activity variations on short…
We study the asymmetric distribution of weak photospheric magnetic field values in the two hemispheres separately using synoptic maps from SDO/HMI, SOLIS/VSM and WSO during solar cycles 21-24. We calculate the weak-field asymmetry (shift)…
Thirty-four years of WSO (Wilcox Solar Observatory) and thirteen years of SOHO/MDI (Michelson Doppler Imager on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) magnetograms have been studied to measure the east-west inclination angle, indicating…
Synoptic magnetograms provide us with knowledge about the evolution of magnetic fields on the solar surface and present important information for forecasting future solar activity. In this work, poloidal and toroidal magnetic field…
Through meticulous daily observation of the Sun's large-scale magnetic field the Wilcox Solar Observatory (WSO) has catalogued two magnetic (Hale) cycles of solar activity. Those two (~22-year long) Hale cycles have yielded four…
We investigate the occurrence of the "extended solar cycle" (ESC) as it occurs in a host observational data spanning 140 years. Investigating coronal, chromospheric, photospheric and interior diagnostics we develop a consistent picture of…
We summarize the fifty-year concerted effort to place the "activity" of the Sun in the context of the stars. As a working definition of solar activity in the context of stars, we adopt those globally-observable variations on time scales…
We describe systematic changes in the centroid frequencies and the splitting coefficients as found using data from MDI on board SOHO, covering cycle 23. The data allow us to construct a seismic map of the evolving solar activity -- covering…
The solar activity in Cycle 23--24 shows differences from the previous cycles that were observed with modern instruments, e.g. long cycle duration and a small number of sunspots. To appreciate the anomalies further, we investigated the…
It is well accepted that the solar cycle originates from a magnetohydrodynamics dynamo deep inside the Sun. Many dynamo models have long been proposed based on a lot of observational constraints. In this paper, using 342 NSO/Kitt Peak solar…
Surface flux transport simulations for the descending phase of cycle 24 using random sources (emerging bipolar magnetic regions) with empirically determined scatter of their properties provide a prediction of the axial dipole moment during…
Context. The Sun shows an activity cycle that is caused by its varying global magnetic field. During a solar cycle, sunspots, i.e. extended regions of strong magnetic fields, occur in activity belts that are slowly migrating from middle to…
Aims: To investigate solar polar fields during cycle 24, using measurements of solar magnetic fields in the latitude range 55 - 90 degree and 78 - 90 degree, to report a prolonged and unusual hemispheric asymmetry in the polar field…