Evidence for Large-Scale Subsurface Convection in the Sun

TL;DR

This study uses helioseismic data to detect large-scale subsurface flows in the Sun, revealing velocities that suggest a cellular convection pattern extending deep below the surface.

Contribution

It introduces a novel analysis of mode coupling coefficients to infer depth-dependent flow velocities, providing evidence for large-scale subsurface convection in the Sun.

Findings

Flow velocities increase with mode degree, from 20 m/s at n=1 to 35 m/s at n=5.

Flow pattern consistent with cellular convection extending about 4% of the solar radius below the surface.

Velocities are compatible with large-scale, possibly cellular, subsurface flow structures.

Abstract

A helioseismic statistical waveform analysis of subsurface flow was performed on two 720-day time series of SOHO/MDI Medium-l spherical-harmonic coefficients. The time series coincide with epochs of high and low solar activity. Time-dependent coupling-strength coefficients b(s,t;n,l) of modes of the same radial order n and degree l, but different azimuthal order m, were inferred from the waveform analysis. These coefficients are sensitive to flows and general aspherical structure. For odd values of s << l, the coefficient b(s,t;n,l) measures an average over depth of the amplitude of one spherical-harmonic (s,t) component of the toroidal flow velocity field. The depth-dependent weighting function defining the average velocity is the fractional kinetic energy density in radius of modes of the (n,l) multiplet. A mean-square (n,l)-dependent flow velocity was inferred from the b-coefficients for s in the range 5 through 35 for each n and l in the respective ranges 1 through 5 and 120 through 149 for the epochs of high and low activity. A further averaging, over l, yielded a root mean square flow velocity as a function of n for each epoch, which average increases from about 20 m/s at n=1 to 35 m/s at n=5. The inferred velocities are consistent with (though perhaps do not demand) a cellular pattern of flow extending over the vertical range of mode sensitivity, estimated to be about four percent of the solar radius below the photosphere.