Parity fluctuations in stellar dynamos

Abstract

Observations of the solar butterfly diagram from sunspot records suggest persistent fluctuation in parity, away from the overall, approximately dipolar structure. We use a simple mean-field dynamo model with a solar-like rotation law, and perturb the $\alpha$-effect. We find that the parity of the magnetic field with respect to the rotational equator can demonstrate what we describe as resonant behaviour, while the magnetic energy behaves in a more or less expected way. We discuss possible applications of the phenomena in the context of various deviations of the solar magnetic field from dipolar symmetry, as reported from analysis of archival sunspot data. We deduce that our model produces fluctuations in field parity, and hence in the butterfly diagram, that are consistent with observed fluctaions in solar behaviour.