Abstract
THE existence of a long period undulation (∼179 yr) in the solar cycle (Fig. 1, based on data from Waldmeier1,2 is suggested by the planetary theory of sunspots. Jose3, for example, postulated an association between the 178.8-yr periodicity in orbital positions of the planets and the phase of the solar cycle. Wood4 used the presumed existence of a cycle of 170–180 yr in solar activity to predict the peak dates of future sunspot cycles. Our work indicates that although a 179-yr periodicity does exist in the sunspot cycle, it is not caused by a primary long term excitation function but is, instead, a beat phenomenon. This can be seen by computing the spectrum for the data shown in Fig. 1.
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References
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COHEN, T., LINTZ, P. Long term periodicities in the sunspot cycle. Nature 250, 398–400 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1038/250398a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/250398a0
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