Solar differential rotation: origin, models, and implications for dynamo

Abstract

Helioseismology shows that the regions occupied by convection and differential rotation inside the sun almost coincide. This supports the leading theoretical concept for the origin of differential rotation as a result of interaction between convection and rotation. This talk outlines the current state of the differential rotation theory. Numerical models based on the theory reproduce the observed solar rotation quite closely. The models also compute meridional flow and predict that the flow at the bottom of the convection zone is not small compared to the surface. Theoretical predictions for stellar differential rotation as a function of the stellar mass and rotation rate are discussed and compared with observations. The implications of the differential rotation models for solar and stellar dynamos are briefly discussed.