Sunspots are a canonical marker of the Sun’s internal magnetic field which flips polarity every ∼22-years. The principal variation of sunspots, an ∼11-year variation in number, modulates the amount of magnetic field that pierces the solar surface and drives significant variations in our Star’s radiative, particulate and eruptive output over that period. This paper presents observations from the Solar and Heliospheric Obser-vatory and Solar Dynamics Observatory indicating that the 11-year sunspot variation is intrinsically tied it to the spatio-temporal overlap of the activity bands belonging to the 22-year magnetic activity cycle. Using a systematic analysis of ubiquitous coro-nal brightpoints, and the magnetic scale on which they appear to form, we show that the landmarks of sunspot cycle 23 can be explained by considering the evolution and interaction of the overlapping activity bands of the longer scale variability. Subject headings:
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
McIntosh et al. (2014) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: