Temporal and Structural Properties of Sunspot Small Short-living Group and Large Long-living Group Populations
We investigate the properties of two types of solar active regions: the small short-living groups (SSGs) and the large long-living groups (LLGs). The combined distribution of areas of active regions is bimodal. When deconvolved, the distributions of each population show a clear presence of cyclic va...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ade13a |
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| Summary: | We investigate the properties of two types of solar active regions: the small short-living groups (SSGs) and the large long-living groups (LLGs). The combined distribution of areas of active regions is bimodal. When deconvolved, the distributions of each population show a clear presence of cyclic variations with LLG and SSG number varying in phase with each other. We see these in-phase variations and the lognormal distribution of SSG/LLG areas as indications that both types of groups originate from the same mechanism, the solar dynamo action. However, the data also suggest that near-surface convection may play a role. The maxima in the bimodal distribution of sunspot group areas (one for LLG and the other for SSG components) coincide with the typical sizes of the supergranules for the LLG population and mesogranules for the SSG population, which suggests that the large-scale convection patterns may affect the sunspot group formation. |
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| ISSN: | 1538-4357 |