Research report 2011 - Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research

How does a sunspot work?

Authors
Lagg, Andreas; Schüssler, Manfred; Solanki, Sami K.
Departments
Sonne und Heliosphäre (Sami K. Solanki)
Summary
The dark sunspots are regions of strong magnetic field at the solar surface. The origin of their characteristic fine structure and the related gas flows remained an unsolved problem for a century. The interplay between observations with highest spatial resolution and realistic computer simulations now led to the resolution of the riddle. The interaction of the magnetic field with the convective motions, which transport energy from the solar interior to the surface, explains the structure and dynamics of sunspots.

For the full text, see the German version.

Go to Editor View