Polar magnetic flux on the Sun in 1996-2003 from SOHO/MDI data

Abstract

Polarity of the polar magnetic fields on the Sun changes in every 11-year sunspot cycle, affecting the large-scale structure of the corona and heliosphere. Using the SOHO/MDI data, the flux of the radial component of the magnetic field is estimated for different latitudinal zones. It is estimated that the total magnetic flux of the Northern polar zone, from 78^° to 88^°, is about 1.5-1.7 × 10²² Mx, and it is about 2.3-2.5× 10²² Mx in the similar Southern polar zone. The new data reveal an interesting result that the total polar magnetic fluxes do not vary significantly during the polar magnetic field reversals in both hemispheres, while the positive and negative parts of the total fluxes do change.