343 research outputs found
Is Cycle 24 the Beginning of a Dalton-Like Minimum?
The unexpected development of cycle 24 emphasizes the need for a better way
to model future solar activity. In this article, we analyze the accumulation of
spotless days during individual cycles from 1798-2010. The analysis shows that
spotless days do not disappear abruptly in the transition towards an active
sun. A comparison with past cycles indicates that the ongoing accumulation of
spotless days is comparable to that of cycle 5 near the Dalton minimum and to
that of cycles 12, 14 and 15. It also suggests that the ongoing cycle has as
much as 20 \pm 8 spotless days left, from July 2010, before it reaches the next
solar maximum. The last spotless day is predicted to be in December 2012, with
an uncertainty of 11 months. This trend may serve as input to the solar dynamo
theories.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures. The final publication is available at
http://www.springerlink.co
Photospheric Magnetic Field: Relationship Between North-South Asymmetry and Flux Imbalance
Photospheric magnetic fields were studied using the Kitt Peak synoptic maps
for 1976-2003. Only strong magnetic fields (B>100 G) of the equatorial region
were taken into account. The north-south asymmetry of the magnetic fluxes was
considered as well as the imbalance between positive and negative fluxes. The
north-south asymmetry displays a regular alternation of the dominant hemisphere
during the solar cycle: the northern hemisphere dominated in the ascending
phase, the southern one in the descending phase during Solar Cycles 21-23. The
sign of the imbalance did not change during the 11 years from one polar-field
reversal to the next and always coincided with the sign of the Sun's polar
magnetic field in the northern hemisphere. The dominant sign of leading
sunspots in one of the hemispheres determines the sign of the magnetic-flux
imbalance. The sign of the north-south asymmetry of the magnetic fluxes and the
sign of the imbalance of the positive and the negative fluxes are related to
the quarter of the 22-year magnetic cycle where the magnetic configuration of
the Sun remains constant (from the minimum where the sunspot sign changes
according to Hale's law to the magnetic-field reversal and from the reversal to
the minimum). The sign of the north-south asymmetry for the time interval
considered was determined by the phase of the 11-year cycle (before or after
the reversal); the sign of the imbalance of the positive and the negative
fluxes depends on both the phase of the 11-year cycle and on the parity of the
solar cycle. The results obtained demonstrate the connection of the magnetic
fields in active regions with the Sun's polar magnetic field in the northern
hemisphere.Comment: 24 pages, 12 figures, 2 table
A Bayesian Analysis of the Correlations Among Sunspot Cycles
Sunspot numbers form a comprehensive, long-duration proxy of solar activity
and have been used numerous times to empirically investigate the properties of
the solar cycle. A number of correlations have been discovered over the 24
cycles for which observational records are available. Here we carry out a
sophisticated statistical analysis of the sunspot record that reaffirms these
correlations, and sets up an empirical predictive framework for future cycles.
An advantage of our approach is that it allows for rigorous assessment of both
the statistical significance of various cycle features and the uncertainty
associated with predictions. We summarize the data into three sequential
relations that estimate the amplitude, duration, and time of rise to maximum
for any cycle, given the values from the previous cycle. We find that there is
no indication of a persistence in predictive power beyond one cycle, and
conclude that the dynamo does not retain memory beyond one cycle. Based on
sunspot records up to October 2011, we obtain, for Cycle 24, an estimated
maximum smoothed monthly sunspot number of 97 +- 15, to occur in
January--February 2014 +- 6 months.Comment: Accepted for publication in Solar Physic
Homologous Flares and Magnetic Field Topology in Active Region NOAA 10501 on 20 November 2003
We present and interpret observations of two morphologically homologous
flares that occurred in active region (AR) NOAA 10501 on 20 November 2003. Both
flares displayed four homologous H-alpha ribbons and were both accompanied by
coronal mass ejections (CMEs). The central flare ribbons were located at the
site of an emerging bipole in the center of the active region. The negative
polarity of this bipole fragmented in two main pieces, one rotating around the
positive polarity by ~ 110 deg within 32 hours. We model the coronal magnetic
field and compute its topology, using as boundary condition the magnetogram
closest in time to each flare. In particular, we calculate the location of
quasiseparatrix layers (QSLs) in order to understand the connectivity between
the flare ribbons. Though several polarities were present in AR 10501, the
global magnetic field topology corresponds to a quadrupolar magnetic field
distribution without magnetic null points. For both flares, the photospheric
traces of QSLs are similar and match well the locations of the four H-alpha
ribbons. This globally unchanged topology and the continuous shearing by the
rotating bipole are two key factors responsible for the flare homology.
However, our analyses also indicate that different magnetic connectivity
domains of the quadrupolar configuration become unstable during each flare, so
that magnetic reconnection proceeds differently in both events.Comment: 24 pages, 10 figures, Solar Physics (accepted
Evolution and Flare Activity of Delta-Sunspots in Cycle 23
The emergence and magnetic evolution of solar active regions (ARs) of
beta-gamma-delta type, which are known to be highly flare-productive, were
studied with the SOHO/MDI data in Cycle 23. We selected 31 ARs that can be
observed from their birth phase, as unbiased samples for our study. From the
analysis of the magnetic topology (twist and writhe), we obtained the following
results. i) Emerging beta-gamma-delta ARs can be classified into three
topological types as "quasi-beta", "writhed" and "top-to-top". ii) Among them,
the "writhed" and "top-to-top" types tend to show high flare activity. iii) As
the signs of twist and writhe agree with each other in most cases of the
"writhed" type (12 cases out of 13), we propose a magnetic model in which the
emerging flux regions in a beta-gamma-delta AR are not separated but united as
a single structure below the solar surface. iv) Almost all the "writhed"-type
ARs have downward knotted structures in the mid portion of the magnetic flux
tube. This, we believe, is the essential property of beta-gamma-delta ARs. v)
The flare activity of beta-gamma-delta ARs is highly correlated not only with
the sunspot area but also with the magnetic complexity. vi) We suggest that
there is a possible scaling-law between the flare index and the maximum umbral
area
Response of the solar atmosphere to magnetic field evolution in a coronal hole region
Methods. We study an equatorial CH observed simultaneously by HINODE and
STEREO on July 27, 2007. The HINODE/SP maps are adopted to derive the physical
parameters of the photosphere and to research the magnetic field evolution and
distribution. The G band and Ca II H images with high tempo-spatial resolution
from HINODE/BFI and the multi-wavelength data from STEREO/EUVI are utilized to
study the corresponding atmospheric response of different overlying layers.
Results. We explore an emerging dipole locating at the CH boundary. Mini-scale
arch filaments (AFs) accompanying the emerging dipole were observed with the Ca
II H line. During the separation of the dipolar footpoints, three AFs appeared
and expanded in turn. The first AF divided into two segments in its late stage,
while the second and third AFs erupted in their late stages. The lifetimes of
these three AFs are 4, 6, 10 minutes, and the two intervals between the three
divisions or eruptions are 18 and 12 minutes, respectively. We display an
example of mixed-polarity flux emergence of IN fields within the CH and present
the corresponding chromospheric response. With the increase of the integrated
magnetic flux, the brightness of the Ca II H images exhibits an increasing
trend. We also study magnetic flux cancellations of NT fields locating at the
CH boundary and present the obvious chromospheric and coronal response. We
notice that the brighter regions seen in the 171 A images are relevant to the
interacting magnetic elements. By examining the magnetic NT and IN elements and
the response of different atmospheric layers, we obtain good positive linear
correlations between the NT magnetic flux densities and the brightness of both
G band (correlation coefficient 0.85) and Ca II H (correlation coefficient
0.58).Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures. A&A, in pres
The fluctuating \alpha-effect and Waldmeier relations in the nonlinear dynamo models
We study the possibility to reproduce the statistical relations of the
sunspot activity cycle, like the so-called Waldmeier relations, the cycle
period - amplitude and the cycle rise rate - amplitude relations, by means of
the mean field dynamo models with the fluctuating \alpha-effect. The dynamo
model includes the long-term fluctuations of the \alpha-effect and two types of
the nonlinear feedback of the mean-field on the \alpha-effect including the
algebraic quenching and the dynamic quenching due to the magnetic helicity
generation. We found that the models are able to reproduce qualitatively and
quantitatively the inclination and dispersion across the Waldmeier relations
with the 20% fluctuations of the \alpha-effect. The models with the dynamic
quenching are in a better agreement with observations than the models with the
algebraic \alpha-quenching. We compare the statistical distributions of the
modeled parameters, like the amplitude, period, the rise and decay rates of the
sunspot cycles, with observations.Comment: revision, (add comment about effect of nonlinear diffusivity): 18
pages, 7 Figures, submitted to Physica Script
Solar cycle variations in the growth and decay of sunspot groups
We analysed the combined Greenwich (1874-1976) and Solar Optical
Observatories Network (1977-2011) data on sunspot groups. The daily rate of
change of the area of a spot group is computed using the differences between
the epochs of the spot group observation on any two consecutive days during its
life-time and between the corrected whole spot areas of the spot group at these
epochs. Positive/negative value of the daily rate of change of the area of a
spot group represents the growth/decay rate of the spot group. We found that
the total amounts of growth and decay of spot groups whose life times > or = 2
days in a given time interval (say one-year) well correlate to the amount of
activity in the same interval. We have also found that there exists a
reasonably good correlation and an approximate linear relationship between the
logarithmic values of the decay rate and area of the spot group at the first
day of the corresponding consecutive days, largely suggesting that a
large/small area (magnetic flux) decreases in a faster/slower rate. There
exists a long-term variation (about 90-year) in the slope of the linear
relationship. The solar cycle variation in the decay of spot groups may have a
strong relationship with the corresponding variations in solar energetic
phenomena such as solar flare activity. The decay of spot groups may also
substantially contribute to the coherence relationship between the total solar
irradiance and the solar activity variations.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space
Science. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1105.106
Protons in near earth orbit
The proton spectrum in the kinetic energy range 0.1 to 200 GeV was measured
by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) during space shuttle flight STS-91 at
an altitude of 380 km. Above the geomagnetic cutoff the observed spectrum is
parameterized by a power law. Below the geomagnetic cutoff a substantial second
spectrum was observed concentrated at equatorial latitudes with a flux ~ 70
m^-2 sec^-1 sr^-1. Most of these second spectrum protons follow a complicated
trajectory and originate from a restricted geographic region.Comment: 19 pages, Latex, 7 .eps figure
A Study of Cosmic Ray Secondaries Induced by the Mir Space Station Using AMS-01
The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) is a high energy particle physics
experiment that will study cosmic rays in the to range and will be installed on the International Space Station
(ISS) for at least 3 years. A first version of AMS-02, AMS-01, flew aboard the
space shuttle \emph{Discovery} from June 2 to June 12, 1998, and collected
cosmic ray triggers. Part of the \emph{Mir} space station was within the
AMS-01 field of view during the four day \emph{Mir} docking phase of this
flight. We have reconstructed an image of this part of the \emph{Mir} space
station using secondary and emissions from primary cosmic rays
interacting with \emph{Mir}. This is the first time this reconstruction was
performed in AMS-01, and it is important for understanding potential
backgrounds during the 3 year AMS-02 mission.Comment: To be submitted to NIM B Added material requested by referee. Minor
stylistic and grammer change
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