Locally weighted regression for sunspots estimation and prediction

Abstract

Locally weighted regression (LOESS) is a modern non-parametric regression method designed for treating cases where classical procedures are not highly efficient or cannot applied efficiently. Sunspots are the darker areas of the solar sphere's surface relative to other regions and are an important indicator of solar activity .The aim of this paper is to model and predict the number of sunspots because of their very importance to understanding the terrestrial consequences of solar activity and its direct impact on weather and communication systems on Earth, which may lead to damage to satellites. In this paper, the number of sunspots represented by annual data for the period from 1900 to 2021 (122 years) as well as monthly data for the period from January 1900 to January 2022 (1465 months) was obtained from the global data center (Sunspot Index and Long-term Solar Observations) (SILSO). The LOESS regression used for estimating and predicting the number of monthly and annual sunspots. The smoothing parameter, as well as the degree of the polynomial that fulfills the lowest for Akaike corrected information criterion. The analysis showed the ability of the LOESS to represent sunspot data by passing diagnostic tests as well as its high predictive ability. From the predictive values for the monthly data, it found that the maximum average number of sunspots will be 123.7 in July 2022, and the lowest average will be in February with 61.3 sunspots. Regarding the annual data, it found from the predictive values that the maximum average number of sunspots will be in the year 2023 with an average of 161.7 sunspots, and the lowest average will be in the year 2029 with an average of 16.1. Keywords: Locally weighted regression; sunspot; solar cycle; prediction.