Identification

Title

Deciphering solar magnetic activity: The solar cycle clock

Abstract

The Sun's variability is controlled by the progression and interaction of the magnetized systems that form the 22-year magnetic activity cycle (the "Hale Cycle") as they march from their origin at similar to 55 degrees latitude to the equator, over similar to 19 years. We will discuss the end point of that progression, dubbed "terminator" events, and our means of diagnosing them. In this paper we expand on the Extended Solar Cycle framework to construct a new solar activity "clock" which maps all solar magnetic activity onto a single normalized epoch based on the terminations of Hale Magnetic Cycles. Defining phase 0*2 pi on this clock as the Terminators, then solar polar field reversals occur at similar to 0.2*2 pi, and the geomagnetically quiet intervals centered around solar minimum start at similar to 0.6*2 pi and end at the terminator, thus lasting 40% of the cycle length. At this onset of quiescence, dubbed a "pre-terminator," the Sun shows a radical reduction in active region complexity and, like the terminator events, is associated with the time when the solar radio flux crosses F10.7 = 90 sfu. We use the terminator-based clock to illustrate a range of phenomena that further emphasize the strong interaction of the global-scale magnetic systems of the Hale Cycle: the vast majority, 96%, of all X-flares happen between the Terminator and pre-Terminator. In addition to the X-rays from violent flares, rapid changes in the number of energetic photons-EUV spectral emission from a hot corona and the F10.7 solar radio flux-impinging on the atmosphere are predictable from the Terminator-normalized unit cycle, which has implications for improving the fidelity of atmospheric modelling.

Resource type

document

Resource locator

Unique resource identifier

code

http://n2t.net/ark:/85065/d7sj1qbb

codeSpace

Dataset language

eng

Spatial reference system

code identifying the spatial reference system

Classification of spatial data and services

Topic category

geoscientificInformation

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keyword value

Text

originating controlled vocabulary

title

Resource Type

reference date

date type

publication

effective date

2016-01-01T00:00:00Z

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Temporal extent

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Dataset reference date

date type

publication

effective date

2022-05-10T00:00:00Z

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Use constraints

Limitations on public access

None

Responsible organisations

Responsible party

contact position

OpenSky Support

organisation name

UCAR/NCAR - Library

full postal address

PO Box 3000

Boulder

80307-3000

email address

opensky@ucar.edu

web address

http://opensky.ucar.edu/

name: homepage

responsible party role

pointOfContact

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