NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Collections About News Help Login
Back to Results
Observed Properties of Giant CellsThe existence of Giant Cells has been suggested by both theory and observation for over 45 years. We have tracked the motions of supergranules in SDO/HMI Doppler velocity data and find larger (Giant Cell) flows that persist for months. The flows in these cells are clockwise around centers of divergence in the north and counter-clockwise in the south. Equatorward flows are correlated with prograde flows - giving the transport of angular momentum toward the equator that is needed to maintain the Sun's rapid equatorial rotation. The cells are most pronounced at mid- and high-latitudes where they exhibit the rotation rates representative of those latitudes. These are clearly large, long-lived, cellular features, with the dynamical characteristics expected from the effects of the Sun's rotation, but the shapes of the cells are not well represented in numerical models. While the Giant Cell flow velocities are small (<10 m/s), their long lifetimes should nonetheless substantially impact the transport of magnetic flux in the Sun's near surface layers.
Document ID
20140011680
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Hathaway, David H. (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Upton, Lisa (Vanderbilt Univ. Nashville, TN, United States)
Colegrove, Owen (Rochester Univ. NY, United States)
Date Acquired
September 15, 2014
Publication Date
June 1, 2014
Subject Category
Solar Physics
Report/Patent Number
M14-3417
Meeting Information
Meeting: American Astronomical Society (AAS) Meeting
Location: Boston, MA
Country: United States
Start Date: June 1, 2014
End Date: June 5, 2014
Sponsors: American Astronomical Society
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.

Related Records

There are no records associated with this record.
No Preview Available