A group of scientists have found the origin of the magnetic field that surrounds the sun.
The magnetic field of the sun determines the behavior of the star, which includes solar storms and solar spots. Scientists explain that the sun was formed similar to how other stars formed from interstellar gas clouds, which contained their own magnetic field.
The sun should have lost its magnetic field in a few million years following its formation but it is still in existence. Scientists claim that the sun's magnetic field is still the strongest in comparison to those of other celestial bodies in the solar system. However, the origin of the sun's magnetic field is still not well known.
"Without a magnetic field, the sun would be a bland star with no details, but for nearly 100 years, the origin of this field remains poorly known," stated NASA.
A recent study led by the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia (IAA-CSIC) pointed out how scientists have found the origin of the sun's magnetic field.
The outer boundary of the sun's magnetic web overlaps with the borders of supergranules, which are structures connected to the presence of hot gas that rises to the sun's surface, the researchers discovered.
"We have discovered that inside these supergranules, in what is known as intranetwork, small magnetic elements appear, which travel toward the outer boundaries and interact with the web," said Milan Gosic, IAA researcher.
The researchers monitored the intranetwork and calculated its influence on the sun's magnetic field. The study found that the small elements transfer and also generate the total magnetic flow on the web in about 14 hours.
Just 40 percent of the entire flow ends on the magnetic web, but it still reloads the web in about 24 hours, the study showed.
Until now, scientists mainly believed that the magnetic field of this web actually results from active zones decaying. However, the researchers found that such a phenomenon is not enough to contribute to the entire flow.
The researchers suggested that as the tiny elements that are in the intranetwork are quite continuous, they contribute to the origins of the sun's magnetic field.
