Overview
- A peer‑reviewed analysis published in late May used 1987–2025 observations from the Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network (BiSON) to track long‑term changes in the Sun’s internal sound‑wave oscillations.
- High‑frequency p‑mode shifts in the latest cycle show magnetic signals concentrated in a much shallower layer just below the photosphere, a pattern that diverges from traditional surface measures such as sunspot counts and radio flux.
- Study co‑authors say the trend cannot be explained simply by weaker magnetic fields and instead indicates a structural reorganisation in how magnetic activity is stored beneath the Sun’s visible surface.
- That reorganisation could change how solar magnetic fields emerge and where flares or coronal mass ejections form, which would affect forecasts of risks to satellites, communications and power grids on Earth.
- The authors stress the result is provisional and will be tested by continued BiSON monitoring through the remainder of Solar Cycle 25 and into Cycle 26 before any revisions to models or forecasts are adopted.