Mechanism of Cyclically Polarity Reversing Solar Magnetic Cycle as a Cosmic Dynamo

2000 ◽  
Vol 179 ◽  
pp. 365-371
Author(s):  
Hirokazu Yoshimura

Abstractwe briefly describe historical development of the concept of solar dynamo mechanism that generates electric current and magnetic field by plasma flows inside the solar convection zone. The dynamo is the driver of the cyclically polarity reversing solar magnetic cycle. The reversal process can easily and visually be understood in terms of magnetic field line stretching and twisting and folding in three-dimensional space by plasma flows of differential rotation and global convection under influence of Coriolis force. This process gives rise to formation of a series of huge magnetic flux tubes that propagate along iso-rotation surfaces inside the convection zone. Each of these flux tubes produces one solar cycle. We discuss general characteristics of any plasma flows that can generate magnetic field and reverse the polarity of the magnetic field in a rotating body in the Universe. We also mention a list of problems which are currently being disputed concerning the solar dynamo mechanism together with observational evidences that are to be constraints as well as verifications of any solar cycle dynamo theories of short and long term behaviors of the Sun, particularly time variations of its magnetic field, plasma flows, and luminosity.

2017 ◽  
Vol 609 ◽  
pp. A32 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Modzelewska ◽  
M. V. Alania

Aims. We study features of the 3D solar anisotropy of Galactic cosmic rays (GCR) for 1965−2014 (almost five solar cycles, cycles 20−24). We analyze the 27-day variations of the 2D GCR anisotropy in the ecliptic plane and the north-south anisotropy normal to the ecliptic plane. We study the dependence of the 27-day variation of the 3D GCR anisotropy on the solar cycle and solar magnetic cycle. We demonstrate that the 27-day variations of the GCR intensity and anisotropy can be used as an important tool to study solar wind, solar activity, and heliosphere. Methods. We used the components Ar, Aϕ and At of the 3D GCR anisotropy that were found based on hourly data of neutron monitors (NMs) and muon telescopes (MTs) using the harmonic analyses and spectrographic methods. We corrected the 2D diurnal (~24-h) variation of the GCR intensity for the influence of the Earth magnetic field. We derived the north-south component of the GCR anisotropy based on the GG index, which is calculated as the difference in GCR intensities of the Nagoya multidirectional MTs. Results. We show that the behavior of the 27-day variation of the 3D anisotropy verifies a stable long-lived active heliolongitude on the Sun. This illustrates the usefulness of the 27-day variation of the GCR anisotropy as a unique proxy to study solar wind, solar activity, and heliosphere. We distinguish a tendency of the 22-yr changes in amplitude of the 27-day variation of the 2D anisotropy that is connected with the solar magnetic cycle. We demonstrate that the amplitudes of the 27-day variation of the north-south component of the anisotropy vary with the 11-yr solar cycle, but a dependence of the solar magnetic polarity can hardly be recognized. We show that the 27-day recurrences of the GG index and the At component are highly positively correlated, and both are highly correlated with the By component of the heliospheric magnetic field.


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuhong Fan

AbstractIt has been a prevailing picture that active regions on the solar surface originate from a strong toroidal magnetic field stored in the overshoot region at the base of the solar convection zone, generated by a deep seated solar dynamo mechanism. This article reviews the studies in regard to how the toroidal magnetic field can destabilize and rise through the convection zone to form the observed solar active regions at the surface. Furthermore, new results from the global simulations of the convective dynamos, and from the near-surface layer simulations of active region formation, together with helioseismic investigations of the pre-emergence active regions, are calling into question the picture of active regions as buoyantly rising flux tubes originating from the bottom of the convection zone. This article also gives a review on these new developments.


2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (S335) ◽  
pp. 94-97
Author(s):  
Milton Munroe

All recent models of solar magnetic cycle behaviour assume that the Ω-effect stretches an existing poloidal magnetic field into a toroidal field using differential rotation (Featherstone and Miesch 2015). The α-effect recycles the toroidal field back to a poloidal field by convection and rotation and this is repeated throughout the cycle. Computer simulations based on that conceptual model still leave many questions unanswered. It has not resolved where the solar dynamo is located, what it is or what causes the differential rotation which it takes for granted. Does this paradigm need changing? The conceptual model presented here examines the sun in horizontal sections, analyses its internal structure, presents new characterizations for the solar wind and structures found and shows how their interaction creates rotation, differential rotation, the solar dynamo and the magnetic cycle.


2006 ◽  
Vol 2 (S239) ◽  
pp. 393-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jørgen Christensen-Dalsgaard

AbstractHelioseismology has provided very detailed inferences about rotation of the solar interior. Within the convection zone the rotation rate roughly shares the latitudinal variation seen in the surface differential rotation. The transition to the nearly uniformly rotating radiative interior takes place in a narrow tachocline, which is likely important to the operation of the solar magnetic cycle. The convection-zone rotation displays zonal flows, regions of slightly more rapid and slow rotation, extending over much of the depth of the convection zone and converging towards the equator as the solar cycle progresses. In addition, there is some evidence for a quasi-periodic variation in rotation, with a period of around 1.3 yr, at the equator near the bottom of the convection zone.


1993 ◽  
Vol 157 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
D. Schmitt

The generation of the solar magnetic field is generally ascribed to dynamo processes in the convection zone. The dynamo effects, differential rotation (ω–effect) and helical turbulence (α–effect) are explained, and the basic properties of the mean–field dynamo equations are discussed in close comparison with the observed solar cycle.Especially the question of the seat of the dynamo is addressed. Problems of a dynamo in the convection zone proper could be magnetic buoyancy, the nearly strict observance of the polarity rules and the migration pattern of the magnetic fields which are difficult to understand in the light of recent studies of the field structure in the convection zone and by observations of the solar acoustic oscillations. To overcome some of these problems it has been suggested that the solar dynamo operates in the thin overshoot region at the base of the convection zone instead. Some aspects of such an interface dynamo are discussed. As an alternative to the turbulent α–effect a dynamic α-effect based on magnetostrophic waves driven by a magnetic buoyancy instability of a magnetic flux layer is introduced. Model calculations for both pictures, a convection zone and an interface dynamo, are presented which use the internal rotation of the sun as deduced from helioseismology. Solutions with solar cycle behaviour are only obtained if the magnetic flux is bounded in the lower convection zone and the α–effect is concentrated near the equator.Another aspect briefly addressed is the nonlinear saturation of the magnetic field. The necessity of the dynamic nature of the dynamo processes is emphasized, and different processes, e.g. magnetic buoyancy and α-quenching, are mentioned.


2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (S271) ◽  
pp. 288-296
Author(s):  
Laurène Jouve ◽  
Michael R. E. Proctor ◽  
Geoffroy Lesur

AbstractWe present the effects of introducing results of 3D MHD simulations of buoyant magnetic fields in the solar convection zone in 2D mean-field Babcock-Leighton models. In particular, we take into account the time delay introduced by the rise time of the toroidal structures from the base of the convection zone to the solar surface. We find that the delays produce large temporal modulation of the cycle amplitude even when strong and thus rapidly rising flux tubes are considered. The study of a reduced model reveals that aperiodic modulations of the solar cycle appear after a sequence of period doubling bifurcations typical of non-linear systems. We also discuss the memory of such systems and the conclusions which may be drawn concerning the actual solar cycle variability.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (S340) ◽  
pp. 9-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kiran Jain ◽  
Sushanta Tripathy ◽  
Rudolf Komm ◽  
Frank Hill ◽  
Rosaria Simoniello

AbstractUsing continuous observations for 22 years from ground-based network GONG and space-borne instruments MDI onboard SoHO and HMI onboard SDO, we report both global and local properties of the convection zone and their variations with time.


1975 ◽  
Vol 68 ◽  
pp. 19-21
Author(s):  
W. M. Glencross

SummaryBabcock (1961) outlined the sequence of events which takes place in the Sun's atmosphere during a solar cycle. Magnetic field loops, having preferred directions, emerge from the solar surface and thereafter merge with neighbouring loops to produce more extended structures. Although flux tubes emerge with a strong E-W field component, having the field direction reversed from one side of the equator to the other, there is a tendency for the longer loops produced by merging to have a significant N-S alignment (Hansen et al., 1972).


1988 ◽  
Vol 123 ◽  
pp. 167-170
Author(s):  
Gaetano Belvedere

The overshoot layer in stellar convection zones is slightly subadiabatic and can be considered as a stable region for storage of magnetic flux. Belvedere, Pidatella and Stix (1986) estimated the size of the overshoot layer and computed the magnetic field strength, beyond which toroidal flux tubes become unstable to buoyancy, for a number of main sequence spectral types ranging from F5 to K0. Here we estimate the relative frequency perturbation of high order acoustic modes due to the presence of a non-oblique axisymmetric magnetic field in the overshoot layer. We find that increases with the advancing spectral type, the predicted frequency splitting being large enough to be detected by observations, at least for the Sun.We conclude that magnetic field induced frequency splitting of high order acoustic modes may well be due to a toroidal field of relatively moderate strength just beneath the bottom of the convection zone.


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