Gravitational multipole moments of the Sun determined from helioseismic estimates of the internal structure and rotation

Abstract

We determine the gravitational multipole momentsJ2n ;n =1 ; 5, of the sun using a model of the interior structure and of solar rotation obtained from helioseismic inversions. The dierential rotation of the convective zone and the underlying transition zone make only a small (0:5%) contribution to the quadrupole moment J2 which is found to have a value2:21 10 7 .