Evidence for a shallow thin magnetic structure and solar dynamo: the driver of torsional oscillations

TL;DR

This paper presents evidence that a thin, shallow magnetic structure near the solar surface drives the solar dynamo and torsional oscillations, explaining magnetic field flips and solar activity patterns.

Contribution

It introduces the concept of a thin, stable magnetic structure (GMS) near the surface as the core driver of solar magnetic phenomena, supported by multiple observational evidences.

Findings

The GMS is approximately 2 Mm thick and located about 1 Mm below the surface.

The magnetic field lines in the GMS are parallel to the surface and rotate over 2 Mm.

The GMS loses $\pi$ radians every 11 years, causing magnetic field flips.

Abstract

The solar dynamo and the solar Global internal Magnetic Structure (GMS) appear to be a thin ($\sim$2 Mm thick) structure near ($\sim$1 Mm below) the solar surface. Evidence for these properties are found from the amplitude of the torsional oscillations and in their velocity contours relationship to solar magnetogram; the power to the chromosphere; power to the corona and the solar wind; the current in the helio-current-sheet measured at the radius of the orbit of Earth; the calculated size ($\sim$1 Mm) of the expanding polar flux when it enters the photosphere; and from the observation that solar magnetic activity is generated near the surface. A thin stable minimum energy state seems to be covering most of the solar surface just below the photosphere. The magnetic field lines should be parallel to the solar surface and rotate with distance from the surface for 2$\pi$ radians in $\sim$2 Mm. Resistive diffusion helps to push the magnetic fields to the surface and the GMS seems to lose $\pi$ radians every 11 years, causing the observed 180$^\circ$ flipping of the solar magnetic fields including the flipping of the polar flux. Further evidence for this GMS and its loss is that solar prominences are made of thin sheets of magnetized plasma, which are, likely, remnants of the lost thin sheet of the GMS. The loss process is consistent with the butterfly pattern of the sunspots and with the differences observed between solar maximum and solar minimum in the corona. The solar dynamo drives current parallel to the polar flux, which, in turn, sustains the GMS using cross-field current drive. For completeness, the formation of sunspots, CMEs and flares is discussed.