Long-Term Solar Variability (LSV) Section
The long-term variability of solar magnetism is a key driver of the Earth's climate system and space environment. The goal of the LSV section is to understand long-term solar variability from the Sun's interior out to the heliosphere and in the broader context of other stellar systems.
Comparative Solar Minima:
Solar magnetic minima represent the time of lowest solar activity and simplest heliospheric structure, and as such enable an interdisciplinary, system-wide view on the origins and impacts of solar cycle variation.Read more »
The Solar Dynamo:
The ultimate origins of solar variability lie below the visible surface, where turbulent convection, differential rotation, and meridional flows work together to produce magnetic fields through the operation of the solar dynamo, and give rise to the 22-year solar magnetic cycle. Read more »
Solar Convection and Internal Rotation:
The plasma flows in the solar interior that power the solar dynamo arise by means of turbulent thermal convection which transports heat from the deep interior to the solar surface and redistributes energy and momentum, establishing differential rotation and meridional flows. Read more »
Magnetic Flux Emergence:
Understanding the process of magnetic flux emergence through the solar convection zone is crucial for understanding the link between the observed magnetic activities at the surface and the dynamo-generated magnetic fields in the interior. Read more »
Simulating Sunspots:
Recent advances in supercomputing have introduced a new level of realism in the theoretical modelling of sunspot structure. Read more »
Coronal and Heliospheric Evolution:
The magnetic field in the Sun's atmosphere continuously evolves through processes of emergence, diffusion, and reconnection, resulting in ongoing reorganizations of the global coronal/helio- spheric magnetic morphology, as well as in the slow buildup of magnetic energy in twisted or sheared magnetic fields. Read more »
The Solar-Stellar Connection:
By observing magnetic activity cycles in other stars and studying the properties of their internal structure and rotation, we gain insight into the Sun's magnetic cycle and evolution. Read more »