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Meridional Motions and Reynolds Stress Determined by Using Kanzelhöhe Drawings and White Light Solar Images from 1964 to 2016

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Sunspot position data obtained from Kanzelhöhe Observatory for Solar and Environmental Research (KSO) sunspot drawings and white light images in the period 1964 to 2016 were used to calculate the… Click to show full abstract

Sunspot position data obtained from Kanzelhöhe Observatory for Solar and Environmental Research (KSO) sunspot drawings and white light images in the period 1964 to 2016 were used to calculate the rotational and meridional velocities of the solar plasma. Velocities were calculated from daily shifts of sunspot groups and an iterative process of calculation of the differential rotation profiles was used to discard outliers. We found a differential rotation profile and meridional motions in agreement with previous studies using sunspots as tracers and conclude that the quality of the KSO data is appropriate for analysis of solar velocity patterns. By analyzing the correlation and covariance of meridional velocities and rotation rate residuals we found that the angular momentum is transported towards the solar equator. The magnitude and latitudinal dependence of the horizontal component of the Reynolds stress tensor calculated is sufficient to maintain the observed solar differential rotation profile. Therefore, our results confirm that the Reynolds stress is the dominant mechanism responsible for transport of angular momentum towards the solar equator.

Keywords: 1964 2016; meridional motions; drawings white; rotation; reynolds stress; white light

Journal Title: Solar Physics
Year Published: 2018

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