Countercell meridional flow and latitudinal distribution of the solar polar magnetic field

Abstract

Recent observations indicate that the latitudinal profile of the magnetic flux shows a pronounced decrease close to the solar north pole during the minimum phase of solar cycle 23. Using a surface flux transport model, we have performed numerical experiments to study the conditions that could lead to such a latitudinal distribution. We find that a strong decrease of the magnetic field near the poles results if a weak countercell of the meridional flow at high latitudes with an equatorward speed of a few m s-1 is present. © 2009. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.