Variations in solar sub-surface rotation from GONG data 1995-1998

Abstract

We have completed an analysis of the first 35 GONG Months (1 GM = 36 days) covering the last solar minimum and the rising phase of cycle 23. The mode parameters have been estimated from 33 time series, each of 3-GM duration, with centers spaced by 1 GM. We report on the temporal evolution of the rotational splitting coefficients up to 15th order. The coefficients do not correlate well with any surface magnetic flux measure yet considered, but we find small but significant trends in their temporal evolution. Inverting the coefficients for two-dimensional rotation information and looking at deviations from the mean produces a picture of a systematic zonal flow migrating towards lower latitudes during the rising phase of the cycle. This flow is probably associated with the torsional oscillation. Similar trends are seen in the 1986-1990 BBSO data.