Flux Tubes Forming Instability Near the Base of the Rotating Convection Zone: A Possible Explanation for the Low Latitudes of Sunspots

Abstract

Abstract The rise of flux tubes with intense magnetic fields from the base of the convection zone to the solar surface has been substantiated as a probable mechanism for sunspot formation. The origin of flux tubes of a sufficient strength (∼105 G) is, however, uncertain. This paper considers the instability of a large-scale toroidal magnetic field caused by the magnetic suppression of convective heat transport as a candidate for the flux-tube formation mechanism. The consideration employs the analytical dependence of eddy diffusion on the magnetic field supplied by mean-field magnetohydrodynamics. The instability tends to produce regions of increased field strength with spatial scales of the order of 100 Mm at the base of the convection zone. Characteristic growth times of the instability are short compared to the 11 yr cycle. The threshold field strength for the onset of the instability increases from several hundred Gauss in the vicinity of the equator to some kilo-Gauss at middle latitudes. Growth rates of unstable disturbances decrease with latitude. These latitudinal trends can be the reason for the observed confinement of sunspot activity to a near-equatorial belt.