What Is the Neon Abundance of the Sun?

Abstract

We have evolved a series of 13 complete solar models that utilize different assumed heavy-element compositions. Models that are based upon the heavy-element abundances recently determined by Asplund and coworkers are inconsistent with helioseismological measurements. However, models in which the neon abundance is increased by 0.4-0.5 dex to logN(Ne)=8.29+/-0.05 [on the scale in which logN(H)=12] are consistent with the helioseismological measurements even though the other heavy-element abundances are in agreement with the determinations of Asplund et al. These results sharpen and strengthen an earlier study by Antia & Basu. The predicted solar neutrino fluxes are affected by the uncertainties in the composition by less than their 1 σ theoretical uncertainties.