The crucial role of surface magnetic fields for the solar dynamo

Abstract

Sunspot cycle driven by linked fields Sunspots indicate magnetic flux emerging at the Sun's surface. Sunspots change over an 11-year time scale, which depends on the behavior of the probable magnetic dynamo within. Cameron et al. suggest that the flux revealed by sunspot activity is effectively driven by the magnetic field strength at the Sun's poles. Their mathematical reasoning explains why the polar field activity can predict the sunspot cycle. Science , this issue p. 1333