Abstract
The uninterrupted measurement of the total solar irradiance during the last three
solar cycles and an increasing amount of solar spectral irradiance measurements as well as solar imaging observations (magnetograms and photometric data) have stimulated the
development of models attributing irradiance variations to solar surface magnetism. Here
we review the current status of solar irradiance measurements and modelling efforts based
on solar photospheric magnetic fields. Thereby we restrict ourselves to the study of solar
variations from days to the solar cycle. Phenomenological models of the solar atmosphere
in combination with imaging observations of solar electromagnetic radiation and measurements
of the photospheric magnetic field have reached high enough quality to show that a
large fraction (at least, about 80%) of the solar irradiance variability can be explained by
the radiative effects of the magnetic activity present in the photosphere. Also, significant
progress has been made with magnetohydrodynamic simulations of convection that allow
us to relate the radiance of the photospheric magnetic structures to the observations.
Original language | Undefined/Unknown |
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Pages (from-to) | 337-380 |
Number of pages | 44 |
Journal | Space Science Reviews |
Volume | 145 |
Issue number | 3-4 |
Publication status | Published - 2009 |