Investigating Variations in Solar Differential Rotation by Helioseismology

Abstract Helioseismic signatures of dynamo waves have recently been discovered in variations of the solar differential rotation, offering valuable insights into the type of dynamo mechanism operating in the solar convection zone. To characterize these variations, we analyze p -mode frequency-splitting data estimated using time intervals of various lengths to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio in inversions of zonal flows. We introduce a novel time-dependent inversion method that inherently smooths the solution over time, eliminating the need for separate post-processing smoothing. By applying this approach to observational data from the Michelson Doppler Imager onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager onboard the the Solar Dynamics Observatory, and Global Oscillation Network Group, we identify similar dynamo wave patterns in both the zonal acceleration and the zonal flow throughout the entire convection zone. Our analysis shows that while using longer time series smooths out temporal variations, the fundamental features observed in the short time series (i.e., 72 days long) persist when inverting data sets covering different time periods. These findings reinforce earlier detections and offer further validation of solar dynamo models. We additionally investigate the dimensionless radial gradient of rotation. Its value is close to −1 and increases in the deeper layers, remaining nearly constant from the equator to midlatitudes within the depth range of 13–35 Mm below the surface; the results at high latitudes remain somewhat inconclusive. The variation of this quantity displays a torsional oscillation-like pattern, albeit with certain differences.