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The solar tachocline.

E. A. Spiegel, Jean-Paul Zahn

Open publisher page 207 citations

Abstract

Acoustic sounding of the Sun reveals that the variation of angular velocity with latitude is independent of depth in the convection zone. By contrast, deep within the radiative zone, the rotation appears to be rigid. The transition between the two rotation laws occurs in a thin, unresolved layer that we here call the tachocline. This paper is an examination of the structure and previous evolution of this layer. We assume that the stress exerted by the convection zone is prescribed, much as oceanographers take the wind stress on the sea surface as given.

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What this paper is about

Acoustic sounding of the Sun reveals that the variation of angular velocity with latitude is independent of depth in the convection zone. By contrast, deep within the radiative zone, the rotation appears to be rigid. The transition between the two rotation laws occurs in a thin, unresolved layer that we here call the tachocline. This paper is an examination of the structure and previous evolution of this layer. We assume that the stress exerted by the convection zone is prescribed, much as oceanographers take the wind stress on the sea surface as given.

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OpenAlex reports 207 citations for this work. Citation counts describe recorded attention and do not establish research quality.

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Available abstract

Acoustic sounding of the Sun reveals that the variation of angular velocity with latitude is independent of depth in the convection zone. By contrast, deep within the radiative zone, the rotation appears to be rigid. The transition between the two rotation laws occurs in a thin, unresolved layer that we here call the tachocline. This paper is an examination of the structure and previous evolution of this layer. We assume that the stress exerted by the convection zone is prescribed, much as oceanographers take the wind stress on the sea surface as given.

Key concepts: Tachocline, Physics, Convection zone, Helioseismology, Astrophysics, Radiation zone, Convection, Solar rotation

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