3D simulations of internal gravity waves in solar-like stars

Abstract

We perform numerical simulations of the whole Sun using the 3D anelastic spherical harmonic (ASH) code. In such models, the radiative and convective zones are non-linearly coupled and in the radiative interior a wave-like pattern is observed. For the first time, we are thus able to model in 3D the excitation and propagation of internal gravity waves (IGWs) in a solar-like star's radiative zone. We compare the properties of our waves to theoretical predictions and results of oscillation calculations. The obtained good agreement allows us to validate the consistency of our approach and to study the characteristics of IGWs. We find that a wave's spectrum is excited up to radial order n=58. This spectrum evolves with depth and time; we show that the lifetime of the highest-frequency modes must be greater than 550 days. We also test the sensitivity of waves to rotation and are able to retrieve the rotation rate to within 5% error by measuring the frequency splitting.