Related papers: Evolution of solar and stellar dynamo theory
Torsional oscillations represent bands of fast and slow zonal flows around the Sun, which extend deep into the convection zone and migrate during solar cycles towards the equator following the sunspot butterfly diagram. Analysis of…
Detailed study of the solar magnetic field is crucial to understand its generation, transport and reversals. The timing of the reversals may have implications on space weather and thus identification of the temporal behavior of the critical…
The level of solar magnetic activity, as exemplified by the number of sunspots and by energetic events in the corona, varies on a wide range of time scales. Most prominent is the 11-year solar cycle, which is significantly modulated on…
The exact location of the solar dynamo remains uncertain--whether it operates primarily in the near-surface shear layer, throughout the entire convection zone, or near the tachocline, a region of sharp transition in the solar rotation,…
We describe the defining observations of the solar cycle that provide constraints for the dynamo processes operating within the Sun. Specifically, we report on the following topics: historical sunspot numbers and revisions; active region…
Previously unobservable mirror asymmetry of the solar magnetic field -- a key ingredient of the dynamo mechanism which is believed to drive the 11-year activity cycle -- has now been measured. This was achieved through systematic monitoring…
One of the most striking manifestations of orderly behavior emerging out of complex interactions in any astrophysical system is the 11-year cycle of sunspots. However, direct sunspot observations and reconstructions of long-term solar…
Since a universally accepted dynamo model of grand minima does not exist at the present time, we concentrate on the physical processes which may be behind the grand minima. After summarizing the relevant observational data, we make the…
The predictability, or lack thereof, of the solar cycle is governed by numerous separate physical processes that act in unison in the interior of the Sun. Magnetic flux transport and the finite time delay it introduces, specifically in the…
Magnetic fields in nearby, star-forming galaxies reveal both large-scale patterns and small-scale structures. A large-scale field reversal may exist in the Milky Way but no such reversals have been observed so far in external galaxies. The…
The origin of galactic and extra-galactic magnetic fields is an unsolved problem in modern cosmology. A possible scenario comes from the idea of these fields emerged from a small field, a seed, which was produced in the early universe…
An overview is given about recent developments and results of comprehensive simulations of magneto-convective processes in the near-surface layers and photosphere of the Sun. Simulations now cover a wide range of phenomena, from whole…
Solar magnetic fields comprise an 11-year activity cycle, represented by the number of sunspots. The maintenance of such a solar magnetic field can be attributed to fluid motion in the convection zone, i.e. a dynamo. This study conducts the…
Observations of the meridional circulation of the Sun, which plays a key role in the operation of the solar dynamo, indicate that its speed varies with the solar cycle, becoming faster during the solar minima and slower during the solar…
We have developed a model for the evolution of the Earth-Moon angular momenta, energy dissipation and tidal torque valid for the entire history of the Earth-Moon system. The model is supported by present observational data.
Context: Most solar and stellar dynamo models use the alpha-Omega scenario where the magnetic field is generated by the interplay between differential rotation (the Omega effect) and a mean electromotive force due to helical turbulent…
Core convection and dynamo activity deep within rotating A-type stars of 2 solar masses are studied with 3--D nonlinear simulations. Our modeling considers the inner 30% by radius of such stars, thus capturing within a spherical domain the…
The evolution of the solar activity comprises, apart from the well-known 11-year cycle, various temporal scales ranging from months up to the secondary cycles known as mid-term oscillations. Its nature deserves a physical explanation. In…
Various aspects of the magnetism of the quiet sun are reviewed. The suggestion that a small scale dynamo acting at granular scales generates what we call the quiet sun fields is studied in some detail. Although dynamo action has been proved…
Stellar systems - star clusters, galaxies, dark matter haloes, and so on - are ubiquitous characters in the evolutionary tale of our Universe. This tutorial article is an introduction to the collective dynamical evolution of the very large…