Reversed-polarity regions

Abstract

It is found by a statistical study of 58 reversed-polarity regions (RPRs) covering the 11-year period 1969-1979 that RPRs (1) have a lifespan comparable to normal active regions, (2) do not show a tendency to rotate toward a more normal alignment, and (3) have stable configurations that do not suggest stress due to their anomalous magnetic alignment. As in normal regions, RPR magnetic complexity is found to be the primary factor in flare productivity. Weak-field RPRs produce no flares, and regions with complex spots produce more flares than regions with non-complex spots by a factor of five. The main difference between RPRs and normal regions lies in complex spot frequency, with less that 17% of normal active regions having such spots and fewer than 1.8% having long-lived complex ones, while 41% of RPRs have complex spots and 24% have long-lived complex spots.