Solar-Cycle Variability Results fromthe Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) Mission
Loading...
Date
2022
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Springer
Abstract
The Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) was a NASA mission that operated
from 2003 to 2020 to provide key climate-monitoring measurements of total solar irradiance
(TSI) and solar spectral irradiance (SSI). This 17-year mission made TSI and SSI observations
during the declining phase of Solar Cycle 23, during all of Solar Cycle 24, and at the
very beginning of Solar Cycle 25. The SORCE solar-variability results include comparisons
of the solar irradiance observed during Solar Cycles 23 and 24 and the solar-cycle minima
levels in 2008 – 2009 and 2019 – 2020. The differences between these two minima are
very small and are not significantly above the estimate of instrument stability over the 11-
year period. There are differences in the SSI variability for Solar Cycles 23 and 24, notably
for wavelengths longer than 250 nm. Consistency comparisons with SORCE variability on
solar-rotation timescales and solar-irradiance model predictions suggest that the SORCE
Solar Cycle 24 SSI results might be more accurate than the SORCE Solar Cycle 23 results.
The SORCE solar-variability results have been useful for many Sun–climate studies and
will continue to serve as a reference for comparisons with future missions studying solar
variability.
Description
Keywords
Total solar irradiance, Solar spectral irradiance, Solar-cycle variability, Sun–climate observations
Citation
Woods, T. N., Harder, J. W., Kopp, G., & Snow, M. (2022). Solar-Cycle Variability Results from the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) Mission. Solar Physics, 297(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11207-022-01980-z