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Scientists create first comprehensive computer model of sunspots
June 19, 2009First model of entire sunspots shows striking, beautiful detail
In a breakthrough that will help scientists unlock mysteries of the sun and its impacts on Earth, scientists have created the first-ever comprehensive computer model of sunspots. The resulting visuals capture both scientific detail and remarkable beauty. The results are published this week in a paper in Science Express. The research was supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
The high-resolution simulations of sunspots open the way for scientists to learn more about the vast mysterious dark patches on the sun's surface, first studied by Galileo. Sunspots are associated with massive ejections of charged plasma that can cause geomagnetic storms and disrupt communications and navigational systems. They are also linked to variations in solar output that can affect weather on Earth and exert a subtle influence on climate patterns.
"Understanding complexities in the solar magnetic field is key to 'space weather' forecasting," says Richard Behnke of NSF's Division of Atmospheric Sciences. "If we can model sunspots, we may be able to predict them and be better prepared for the potential serious consequences here on Earth of these violent storms on the sun."
Scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo., collaborated with colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany, building on a computer code that had been created at the University of Chicago.
"This is the first time we have a model of an entire sunspot," says lead paper author Matthias Rempel, a scientist at NCAR's High Altitude Observatory. "If you want to understand all the drivers of Earth's atmospheric system, you have to understand how sunspots emerge and evolve. Our simulations will advance research into the inner workings of the sun as well as connections between solar output and Earth's atmosphere."
Ever since outward flows from the center of sunspots were discovered 100 years ago, scientists have worked to explain the complex structure of sunspots, whose number peaks and wanes during the 11-year solar cycle. Sunspots accompany intense magnetic activity that is associated with solar flares and massive ejections of plasma that can buffet Earth's atmosphere. The resulting damage to power grids, satellites and other sensitive technological systems takes an economic toll on a rising number of industries.
Creating such detailed simulations would not have been possible even as recently as a few years ago, before the latest generation of supercomputers and a growing array of instruments to observe the sun. The new computer models capture pairs of sunspots with opposite polarity. In striking detail, they reveal the dark central region, or umbra, with brighter umbral dots, as well as webs of elongated narrow filaments with flows of mass streaming away from the spots in the outer penumbral regions. They also capture the convective flow and movement of energy that underlie the sunspots, and which are not directly detectable by instruments.
The models suggest that the magnetic fields within sunspots need to be inclined in certain directions in order to create such complex structures. The authors conclude that there is a unified physical explanation for the structure of sunspots in umbra and penumbra that's the consequence of convection in a magnetic field with varying properties.
The simulations can help scientists decipher the mysterious, subsurface forces in the sun that cause sunspots. Such work may lead to an improved understanding of variations in solar output and their impacts on Earth.
To create the simulations, the research team designed a virtual, three- dimensional domain measuring about 31,000 miles by 62,000 miles, and about 3,700 miles in depth--an expanse as long as eight times Earth's diameter, and as deep as Earth's radius.
The scientists then used a series of equations involving fundamental physical laws of energy transfer, fluid dynamics, magnetic induction and feedback, and other phenomena to simulate sunspot dynamics at 1.8 billion grid points within the domain, each spaced about 10 to 20 miles apart.
They solved the equations on NCAR's new bluefire supercomputer, an IBM machine that can perform 76 trillion calculations per second. The work drew on increasingly detailed observations from a network of ground- and space-based instruments to verify that the model captured sunspots realistically. The new models are far more detailed and realistic than previous simulations that failed to capture the complexities of the outer penumbral region.
The researchers noted, however, that even their new model does not accurately capture the lengths of the filaments in parts of the penumbra. They can refine the model by placing the grid points closer together, but that would require more computing power than is currently available.
"Advances in supercomputing power are enabling us to close in on some of the most fundamental processes of the sun," says Michael Knölker, director of NCAR's High Altitude Observatory and a co-author of the paper. "With this breakthrough simulation, an overall comprehensive physical picture is emerging for everything that observers have associated with the appearance, formation, dynamics, and the decay of sunspots on the sun's surface."
National Science Foundation
Scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo., collaborated with colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany, building on a computer code that had been created at the University of Chicago.
"This is the first time we have a model of an entire sunspot," says lead paper author Matthias Rempel, a scientist at NCAR's High Altitude Observatory. "If you want to understand all the drivers of Earth's atmospheric system, you have to understand how sunspots emerge and evolve. Our simulations will advance research into the inner workings of the sun as well as connections between solar output and Earth's atmosphere."
Ever since outward flows from the center of sunspots were discovered 100 years ago, scientists have worked to explain the complex structure of sunspots, whose number peaks and wanes during the 11-year solar cycle. Sunspots accompany intense magnetic activity that is associated with solar flares and massive ejections of plasma that can buffet Earth's atmosphere. The resulting damage to power grids, satellites and other sensitive technological systems takes an economic toll on a rising number of industries.
Creating such detailed simulations would not have been possible even as recently as a few years ago, before the latest generation of supercomputers and a growing array of instruments to observe the sun. The new computer models capture pairs of sunspots with opposite polarity. In striking detail, they reveal the dark central region, or umbra, with brighter umbral dots, as well as webs of elongated narrow filaments with flows of mass streaming away from the spots in the outer penumbral regions. They also capture the convective flow and movement of energy that underlie the sunspots, and which are not directly detectable by instruments.
The models suggest that the magnetic fields within sunspots need to be inclined in certain directions in order to create such complex structures. The authors conclude that there is a unified physical explanation for the structure of sunspots in umbra and penumbra that's the consequence of convection in a magnetic field with varying properties.
The simulations can help scientists decipher the mysterious, subsurface forces in the sun that cause sunspots. Such work may lead to an improved understanding of variations in solar output and their impacts on Earth.
To create the simulations, the research team designed a virtual, three- dimensional domain measuring about 31,000 miles by 62,000 miles, and about 3,700 miles in depth--an expanse as long as eight times Earth's diameter, and as deep as Earth's radius.
The scientists then used a series of equations involving fundamental physical laws of energy transfer, fluid dynamics, magnetic induction and feedback, and other phenomena to simulate sunspot dynamics at 1.8 billion grid points within the domain, each spaced about 10 to 20 miles apart.
They solved the equations on NCAR's new bluefire supercomputer, an IBM machine that can perform 76 trillion calculations per second. The work drew on increasingly detailed observations from a network of ground- and space-based instruments to verify that the model captured sunspots realistically. The new models are far more detailed and realistic than previous simulations that failed to capture the complexities of the outer penumbral region.
The researchers noted, however, that even their new model does not accurately capture the lengths of the filaments in parts of the penumbra. They can refine the model by placing the grid points closer together, but that would require more computing power than is currently available.
"Advances in supercomputing power are enabling us to close in on some of the most fundamental processes of the sun," says Michael Knölker, director of NCAR's High Altitude Observatory and a co-author of the paper. "With this breakthrough simulation, an overall comprehensive physical picture is emerging for everything that observers have associated with the appearance, formation, dynamics, and the decay of sunspots on the sun's surface."
National Science Foundation
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Scientists uncover solar cycle, stratosphere and ocean connections
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Connections among solar cycle, stratosphere and ocean discovered
Subtle connections between the 11-year-solar cycle, the stratosphere and the tropical Pacific Ocean work in sync to generate periodic weather patterns that affect much of the globe, according to research results appearing this week in the journal Science.
Scientists pinpoint the 'edge of space'
Where does space begin? Scientists at the University of Calgary have created a new instrument that is able to track the transition between the relatively gentle winds of Earth's atmosphere and the more violent flows of charged particles in space - flows that can reach speeds well over 1000 km/hr. And they have accomplished this in unprecedented detail.
NOAA: Sunspot is harbinger of new solar cycle, increasing risk for electrical systems
A new 11-year cycle of heightened solar activity, bringing with it increased risks for power grids, critical military, civilian and airline communications, GPS signals and even cell phones and ATM transactions, showed signs it was on its way late Thursday when the cycle's first sunspot appeared in the sun's Northern Hemisphere, NOAA scientists said.
Satellite shows regional variation in warming from sun during solar cycle
A NASA satellite designed, built and controlled by the University of Colorado at Boulder is expected to help scientists resolve wide-ranging predictions about the coming solar cycle peak in 2012 and its influence on Earth's warming climate, according to the chief scientist on the project.
Link between sunspots, rain helps predict disease in east Africa
The research, conducted by paleoclimatologist Curt Stager of Paul Smith's College in Paul Smiths, N.Y. and colleagues, can be used by public health officials to increase measures against insect-borne diseases long before epidemics begin.
Sunspot abundance linked to heavy rains in East Africa
A new study reveals correlations between plentiful sunspots and periods of heavy rain in East Africa. Intense rainfall in the region often leads to flooding and disease outbreaks.
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The Enigma of Sunspots: A Story of Discovery and Scientific Revolution by Judit Brody (Author) Sunspots, the strange and elusive dark shapes that periodically sweep across the Sun’s surface, have mystified people for centuries. Given their elusive cyclical nature and the fact that it is both painful and dangerous to observe the Sun directly, it is little wonder that records of sunspots were almost nonexistent in Europe before the seventeenth century. Today such solar emissions are thought to coincide with major effects in global weather patterns. It may be that this powerful phenomena holds a key to our understanding of the nature of the Sun. In The Enigma of Sunspots, Judit Brody tells the fascinating story of our efforts to understand sunspots, beginning with the lives and quarrels of those who first charted their mysterious patterns of behavior. |
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Sunspots by W. Clifton Adams (Author) For anyone who has read and enjoyed Aesop's fables or Gibran's "The Prophet," this book is sure to please. The book is a unique blend of fables, poetry, and drawings by the author and photography by Rhae Adams. Like Aesop, Adams tells entertaining stories centered on a central character, Faith Moon. She renders her advice in poetic metaphors to the residents of a fictional small town. But it is much more, as each character struggles to find the best way to live their lives. |
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Sunspots And Their Effects by Harlan True Stetson (Author) Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork. |
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Don't Let Em Stop You by Sunspot Jonz |
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SunSpot ES Gel - 0.5 oz by SunSpot ES SunSpot ES contains an extra strength blend of ingredients, including glycoalkaloids, to soften and exfoliate scaly skin patches, called sun spots. You will feel SunSpot ES begin working almost immediately. In as little as four weeks, you will notice healthy revitalized skin. SunSpot ES is not a wrinkle or fade cream. |
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Good Earth Lighting, Inc. G9165-BK-I Sunspot Five-Light 10-Watt Halogen Undercabinet Lighting Puck, Black by Good Earth Lighting, Inc. If you need accent lighting but want a little more illumination than smaller undercabinet models provide, the G9165 pucks are the answer. Good Earth Lighting's Sunspot line of halogen undercabinet "puck" lights give you bright, clean light in a small, low-profile housing that will fit just about anywhere (2-3/4-inch diameter by 1-inch depth). The G9165 gives you the extra brightness of five 10-watt halogen bulbs. Some assembly is required--you have to install the roller on-off switch, for instance--but the included owner's manual makes the process clear. Installation is straightforward, too (the puck may be surface- or recess-mounted), and the unit comes with everything you need, including screws and wire guides. Overall, a great option for brighter undercabinet accent lighting. For... |
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Sunspot (Deathlands) by James Axler (Author) In the wake of a nuclear Armageddon, the hellscape of Deathlands conspires to torment strong and weak alike, festering most deeply in those who still possess the deepest core of human decency. Now the past lies in the ashes, while the mysteries of the future unfold in the hands of those willing to live each new day in serach of hope for tomorrow. The endless struggle for power among the barons is a way of life in Deathlands, but Ryan Cawdor and his warrior survivalists take no sides--unless forced to. But as the land around the Rio Grande reaches the breaking point in a bitter war, the companions are harnessed into battle, moving toward a grim confrontation with an old enemy whose secret stockpile of twenty-first-century nerve gas is poised to unleash infinite madness once more... |
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Sunspot Bulletin by Sidc % R Van Der Linden | |
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Lane Labs - Sunspot Es - Exfoliant For Sun, .5 oz gel by Lane Labs Thousands of sun worshipers have used SunSpot ES to exfoliate rough, raised, scaly skin patches, commonly called sunspots. An extra strength blend of ingredients, including glycoalkaloids that work safely and quickly. LaneLabs trusted ingredients, integrity and clinical support. Available for a limited time. |
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X Men X-Force Sunspot Figure with Explosive Power Punch by Toy Biz |
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