Evolution of a very complex active region during the decay phase of Cycle 23

M. POISSON; M. LÓPEZ FUENTES; C. H. MANDRINI

Mendoza

Simposio; Comparative Magnetic Minima: Characterizing quiet times in the Sun and Stars; 2011

We study the emergence and evolution of AR NOAA 10314, observed on the solar disk during March 13-19, 2003. This extremely complex AR is of particular interest due to its unusual magnetic flux distribution and the clear rotation of the polarities of a δ-spot within the AR. Using SOHO/MDI magnetograms we follow the evolution of the photospheric magnetic flux to infer the morphology of the structure that originates the AR. We determine the tilt angle variation for the δ-spot and find a counter-clockwise rotation corresponding to a positive writhed flux tube. We compute the magnetic helicity injection and the total accumulated helicity in the AR and find a correlation with the observed rotation.