The effect of magnetic variability on stellar angular momentum loss. I. the solar wind torque during sunspot cycles 23 and 24

Abstract

The rotational evolution of cool stars is governed by magnetized stellar winds that slow the stellar rotation during their main sequence lifetimes. Magnetic variability is commonly observed in Sun-like stars, and the changing strength and topology of the global field is expected to affect the torque exerted by the stellar wind. We present three different methods for computing the angular momentum loss in the solar wind. Two are based on MHD simulations from Finley & Matt (2018), with one using the open flux measured in the solar wind, and the other using remotely observed surface magnetograms. Both methods agree in the variation of the solar torque seen through the solar cycle and show a 30%-40% decrease from cycles 23 to 24. The two methods calculate different average values, 2.9 ×1030 erg (open flux) and 0.35 ×1030 erg (surface field). This discrepancy results from the already well-known difficulty of reconciling the magnetograms with the observed open flux, which is currently not understood, leading to an inability to discriminate between these two calculated torques. The third method is based on the observed spin rates of Sun-like stars, which decrease with age, directly probing the average angular momentum loss. This method gives 6.2 ×1030 erg for the solar torque, larger than the other methods. This may be indicative of further variability in the solar torque on timescales much longer than the magnetic cycle. We discuss the implications for applying the formula to other Sun-like stars, where only surface field measurements are available, and where the magnetic variations are ill-constrained.