The Clustering Properties of Active Regions During the First Part of Solar Cycle 23 |
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| Authors: | Pojoga Sorin Cudnik Brian |
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| Institution: | (1) Prairie View Solar Observatory, Prairie View A&M University, P.O. Box 307, Prairie View, TX, 77446, U.S.A |
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| Abstract: | In this paper we study the longitudinal distribution of solar magnetic regions, using the synoptic magnetic maps from Kitt Peak National Observatory, the active region data from Solar Geophysical Data and the H observations from Prairie View Solar Observatory. The clusters of activity were identified by comparing the positions of sunspot groups between successive Carrington rotations. We have found that a large percentage of active regions was involved in the clustering process (40–50%, if we only take into account clusters with a minimum lifetime of 4 rotations). The nests followed the differential rotation of the solar surface, within an intrinsic spread. A remarkable feature of sunspot nests detected in our study is their high degree of complexity, with a large number of nests being organized in diverging, converging, or parallel structures. Of the flares which occurred during the time interval of interest, the great majority originated from the sunspot nests; the distribution of the flares between these nests was not uniform, revealing active and quiet nests. A high flaring rate was recorded at the intersection points of diverging or converging nests, suggesting that these points represent violent interactions of magnetic fluxes. The complexes were in continuous interaction, which impacts their properties and future evolution. The behavior of the nests indicate that they are maintained by repeated injection of magnetic flux rather than by the evolution of the surface magnetic fields. |
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