Deciphering solar magnetic activity. I. On the relationship between the sunspot cycle and the evolution of small magnetic features

McIntosh, Scott W.; Wang, Xin; Markel, Robert S.; Thompson, Michael J.; Leamon, Robert J.; Malanushenko, Anna V.; Davey, Alisdair R.; Howe, Rachel; Krista, Larisza D.; Cirtain, Jonathan W.; Gurman, Joseph B.

doi:10.1088/0004-637X/792/1/12

Title: Deciphering solar magnetic activity. I. On the relationship between the sunspot cycle and the evolution of small magnetic features

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Abstract

Sunspots are a canonical marker of the Sun's internal magnetic field which flips polarity every ∼22 yr. The principal variation of sunspots, an ∼11 yr variation, modulates the amount of the magnetic field that pierces the solar surface and drives significant variations in our star's radiative, particulate, and eruptive output over that period. This paper presents observations from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory and Solar Dynamics Observatory indicating that the 11 yr sunspot variation is intrinsically tied to the spatio-temporal overlap of the activity bands belonging to the 22 yr magnetic activity cycle. Using a systematic analysis of ubiquitous coronal brightpoints and the magnetic scale on which they appear to form, we show that the landmarks of sunspot cycle 23 can be explained by considering the evolution and interaction of the overlapping activity bands of the longer-scale variability.

Authors:

McIntosh, Scott W.; Wang, Xin; Markel, Robert S.; Thompson, Michael J. ^[1]; Leamon, Robert J.; Malanushenko, Anna V. ^[2]; Davey, Alisdair R. ^[3]; Howe, Rachel ^[4]; Krista, Larisza D. ^[5]; Cirtain, Jonathan W. ^[6]; Gurman, Joseph B.

High Altitude Observatory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, P.O. Box 3000, Boulder, CO 80307 (United States)
Department of Physics, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717 (United States)
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT (United Kingdom)
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80205 (United States)
Marshall Space Flight Center, Code ZP13, Huntsville, AL 35812 (United States)

Publication Date:: Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 2014

OSTI Identifier:: 22365239

Resource Type:: Journal Article

Journal Name:: Astrophysical Journal

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 792; Journal Issue: 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 0004-637X

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 79 ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY; EVOLUTION; INTERACTIONS; MAGNETIC FIELDS; ROTATION; SPACE-TIME MODEL; SUN; SUNSPOTS; SURFACES

Citation Formats


                    McIntosh, Scott W., Wang, Xin, Markel, Robert S., Thompson, Michael J., Leamon, Robert J., Malanushenko, Anna V., Davey, Alisdair R., Howe, Rachel, Krista, Larisza D., Cirtain, Jonathan W., Gurman, Joseph B., and Pesnell, William D., E-mail: mscott@ucar.edu. Deciphering solar magnetic activity. I. On the relationship between the sunspot cycle and the evolution of small magnetic features.  United States: N. p., 2014. 
        Web.  doi:10.1088/0004-637X/792/1/12.

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                    McIntosh, Scott W., Wang, Xin, Markel, Robert S., Thompson, Michael J., Leamon, Robert J., Malanushenko, Anna V., Davey, Alisdair R., Howe, Rachel, Krista, Larisza D., Cirtain, Jonathan W., Gurman, Joseph B., & Pesnell, William D., E-mail: mscott@ucar.edu. Deciphering solar magnetic activity. I. On the relationship between the sunspot cycle and the evolution of small magnetic features.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/792/1/12

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                    McIntosh, Scott W., Wang, Xin, Markel, Robert S., Thompson, Michael J., Leamon, Robert J., Malanushenko, Anna V., Davey, Alisdair R., Howe, Rachel, Krista, Larisza D., Cirtain, Jonathan W., Gurman, Joseph B., and Pesnell, William D., E-mail: mscott@ucar.edu. 2014.  
        "Deciphering solar magnetic activity. I. On the relationship between the sunspot cycle and the evolution of small magnetic features".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/792/1/12.

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@article{osti_22365239,

  title        = {Deciphering solar magnetic activity. I. On the relationship between the sunspot cycle and the evolution of small magnetic features},

  author       = {McIntosh, Scott W. and Wang, Xin and Markel, Robert S. and Thompson, Michael J. and Leamon, Robert J. and Malanushenko, Anna V. and Davey, Alisdair R. and Howe, Rachel and Krista, Larisza D. and Cirtain, Jonathan W. and Gurman, Joseph B. and Pesnell, William D., E-mail: mscott@ucar.edu},

  abstractNote = {Sunspots are a canonical marker of the Sun's internal magnetic field which flips polarity every ∼22 yr. The principal variation of sunspots, an ∼11 yr variation, modulates the amount of the magnetic field that pierces the solar surface and drives significant variations in our star's radiative, particulate, and eruptive output over that period. This paper presents observations from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory and Solar Dynamics Observatory indicating that the 11 yr sunspot variation is intrinsically tied to the spatio-temporal overlap of the activity bands belonging to the 22 yr magnetic activity cycle. Using a systematic analysis of ubiquitous coronal brightpoints and the magnetic scale on which they appear to form, we show that the landmarks of sunspot cycle 23 can be explained by considering the evolution and interaction of the overlapping activity bands of the longer-scale variability.},

  doi          = {10.1088/0004-637X/792/1/12},

  url          = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22365239},
  journal      = {Astrophysical Journal},

  issn         = {0004-637X},

  number       = 1,

  volume       = 792,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 2014},

  month        = {Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 2014}

}

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