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G. Guerrero

Publications and source records attributed to G. Guerrero.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Reynolds stress and heat flux in spherical shell convection

(abridged) Context. Turbulent fluxes of angular momentum and heat due to rotationally affected convection play a key role in determining differential rotation of stars. Here we perform a systematic comparison between Cartesian and spherical geometries as a function of the rotation rate. Aims. We extend the earlier studies by using spherical wedges to obtain turbulent angular momentum and heat transport as functions of the rotation rate from stratified convection. We compare results from spherical and Cartesian models in the same parameter regime. In particular, we want to clarify whether the sharp equatorial profile of the horizontal Reynolds stress found in earlier Cartesian models is reproduced in spherical models. Methods. We employ direct numerical simulations of turbulent convection. In order to reach as high spatial resolution as possible in the spherical runs, we model only parts of the latitude and longitude. The rotational influence, measured by the Coriolis number, is varied from zero to roughly seven, which is the regime that is likely to be realised in the solar convection zone. Cartesian simulations are performed in overlapping parameter regimes. Results. For slow rotation we find that the radial and latitudinal turbulent angular momentum fluxes are directed inward and equatorward, respectively. In the rapid rotation regime the radial flux changes sign in contradiction with theory. The latitudinal flux remains mostly equatorward and develops a maximum close to the equator. In Cartesian simulations this peak can be explained by the strong `banana cells'. The latitudinal heat flux is mostly equatorward for slow rotation but changes sign for rapid rotation. The rotation profiles vary from anti-solar (slow equator) for slow and intermediate rotation to solar-like (fast equator) for rapid rotation. The solar-like profiles are dominated by the Taylor--Proudman balance.

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Dynamo action and magnetic buoyancy in convection simulations with vertical shear

A hypothesis for sunspot formation is the buoyant emergence of magnetic flux tubes created by the strong radial shear at the tachocline. In this scenario, the magnetic field has to exceed a threshold value before it becomes buoyant and emerges through the whole convection zone. We follow the evolution of a random seed magnetic field with the aim of study under what conditions it is possible to excite the dynamo instability and whether the dynamo generated magnetic field becomes buoyantly unstable and emerges to the surface as expected in the flux-tube context. We perform numerical simulations of compressible turbulent convection that include a vertical shear layer. Like the solar tachocline, the shear is located at the interface between convective and stable layers. We find that shear and convection are able to amplify the initial magnetic field and form large-scale elongated magnetic structures. The magnetic field strength depends on several parameters such as the shear amplitude, the thickness and location of the shear layer, and the magnetic Reynolds number ($\Rm$). Whenever the toroidal magnetic field reaches amplitudes greater a threshold value which is close to the equipartition value, it becomes buoyant and rises into the convection zone where it expands and forms mushroom shape structures. Some events of emergence, i.e. those with the largest amplitudes of the initial field, are able to reach the very uppermost layers of the domain. These episodes are able to modify the convective pattern forming either broader convection cells or convective eddies elongated in the direction of the field. However, in none of these events the field preserves its initial structure.

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Flux transport solar dynamo models, current problems and possible solutions

The sunspot solar cycle has been usually explained as the result of a dynamo process operating in the sun. This is a classical problem in Astrophysics that until the present is not fully solved. Here we discuss current problems and limitations with the solar dynamo modeling and their possible solutions using a kinematic dynamo model within the Babcock-Leighton approximation as a tool. In particular, we discuss the importance of the turbulent magnetic pumping versus the meridional flow circulation in the dynamo operation.

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Turbulent magnetic pumping in a Babcock-Leighton solar dynamo model

The turbulent pumping effect corresponds to the transport of magnetic flux due to the presence of density and turbulence gradients in convectively unstable layers. In the induction equation it appears as an advective term and for this reason it is expected to be important in the solar and stellar dynamo processes. In this work, we have explored the effects of the turbulent pumping in a flux-dominated Babcock-Leighton solar dynamo model with a solar-like rotation law. The results reveal the importance of the pumping mechanism for solving current limitations in mean field dynamo modeling such as the storage of the magnetic flux and the latitudinal distribution of the sunspots. In the case that a meridional flow is assumed to be present only in the upper part of the convective zone, it is the full turbulent pumping that regulates both the period of the solar cycle and the latitudinal distribution of the sunspots activity.

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ESO deep observations of the optical afterglow of GRB990510

We present the results of optical observations of the GRB990510 field carried out at different epochs from European Southern Observatory (ESO) telescopes. Deep observations, down to a limiting magnitude of about 27 and 24 in the Bessel-R and Gunn-I band, respectively, were obtained between May 16 and 18 from the ESO NTT-SUSI2 telescope and on May 20 from the ESO 3.6 m (EFOSC2) telescope. These observations, together with other published photometric data, allowed to monitor the faint tail of the decaying Optical Transient (OT) associated to the GRB990510. We discuss the light curves in the different filters (V, R and I) in the light of the recently proposed decay laws. No obvious host associated to the GRB990510 optical afterglow was found in the R and I band images. By comparing the light curves with respect to the theoretical colors of galaxies with different morphology we derived a lower limit of R about 26.6 for the host galaxy.

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