Reconstruction of Solar Subsurfaces by Local Helioseismology

TL;DR

This paper uses local helioseismology to reconstruct and analyze subsurface solar structures and flows, revealing their evolution with the solar cycle and their relation to magnetic activity and supergranulation.

Contribution

It presents new insights into subsurface flow patterns, asymmetries, and the stability of kinetic helicity over the solar cycle using 5 years of SDO/HMI data.

Findings

Active regions are associated with multi-scale flow patterns.

Meridional flows show North-South asymmetry correlated with magnetic activity.

Kinetic helicity remains stable during the solar cycle.

Abstract

Local helioseismology has opened new frontiers in our quest for understanding of the internal dynamics and dynamo on the Sun. Local helioseismology reconstructs subsurface structures and flows by extracting coherent signals of acoustic waves traveling through the interior and carrying information about subsurface perturbations and flows, from stochastic oscillations observed on the surface. The initial analysis of the subsurface flow maps reconstructed from the 5 years of SDO/HMI data by time-distance helioseismology reveals the great potential for studying and understanding of the dynamics of the quiet Sun and active regions, and the evolution with the solar cycle. In particular, our results show that the emergence and evolution of active regions are accompanied by multi-scale flow patterns, and that the meridional flows display the North-South asymmetry closely correlating with the magnetic activity. The latitudinal variations of the meridional circulation speed, which are probably related to the large-scale converging flows, are mostly confined in shallow subsurface layers. Therefore, these variations do not necessarily affect the magnetic flux transport. The North-South asymmetry is also pronounced in the variations of the differential rotation ("torsional oscillations"). The calculations of a proxy of the subsurface kinetic helicity density show that the helicity does not vary during the solar cycle, and that supergranulation is a likely source of the near-surface helicity.