A possible explanation of the Maunder minimum from a flux transport dynamo model

TL;DR

This paper uses a flux transport dynamo model to explain the Maunder minimum by suggesting that low poloidal field levels caused by fluctuations in the Babcock--Leighton process led to a prolonged period of reduced sunspot activity.

Contribution

It introduces a flux transport dynamo model that accounts for the Maunder minimum through poloidal field fluctuations, providing a plausible explanation for this historical solar activity minimum.

Findings

Model successfully reproduces characteristics of the Maunder minimum.

Low poloidal field levels can trigger extended solar minima.

Parameter tuning aligns model output with historical records.

Abstract

We propose that the poloidal field at the end of the last sunspot cycle before the Maunder minimum fell to a very low value due to fluctuations in the Babcock--Leighton process. With this assumption, a flux transport dynamo model is able to explain various aspects of the historical records of the Maunder minimum remarkably well on choosing the parameters of the model suitably to give the correct growth time.