Toward a Self-Consistent Model of the Solar Dynamo

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AST-0602023Rogers, TamaraDr. Rogers is awarded an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship to carry out a program of research and education at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). Despite detailed observations and decades of inquiry, the solar magnetic cycle is still poorly understood. While the usage of mean-field magnetohydrodynamic models is a useful tool to study the dynamo process, these models are often criticized as over-simplified approximations to the complex underlying physics. As an NSF Fellow, Dr. Rogers will conduct three-dimensional, self-consistent numerical simulations of convection and dynamo action in a realistic solar model. This is a formidable undertaking but one that has become possible in light of new advances in computational resources and sophisticated numerical tools. A fundamental understanding of the solar dynamo will have far-reaching consequences for the Sun-Earth connection and magnetic activity on other stars.Dr. Rogers will also utilize NCAR's extensive existing education and outreach arm.The NCAR "Windows to the Universe" website (www.windows.ucar.edu) is a web-based learning tool which offers numerous tools for educators, including classroom activities. Dr. Rogers will (1) extend the existing website to include more classroom activities related to the Sun and (2) bring these activities into classrooms in underserved communities through both in-school and after-school programs.