Seismic view of the solar interior

Abstract

The interior of the Sun is not directly observable to us. Nevertheless, it is possible to infer the physical conditions prevailing in the solar interior with the help of theoretical models coupled with observational input provided by measured frequencies of solar oscillations. The frequencies of these solar oscillations depend on the internal structure and dynamics of the Sun and from the knowledge of these frequencies it is possible to infer the internal structure as well as the large scale flows inside the Sun, in the same way as the observations of seismic waves on the surface of Earth help us in the study of its interior. With the accumulation of seismic data over the last six years it has also become possible to study temporal variations in the solar interior. Some of these seismic inferences would be described.