What Is The Neon Abundance Of The Sun?

Abstract

We have evolved a series of thirteen complete solar models that utilize different assumed heavy element compositions. Models that are based upon the heavy element abundances recently determined by Asplund, Grevesse, and Sauval (2005) are inconsistent with helioseismological measurements. However, models in which the neon abundance is increased by 0.4-0.5 dex to log N(Ne) = 8.29 +- 0.05 (on the scale in which log N(H) = 12) are consistent with the helioseismological measurements even though the other heavy element abundances are in agreement with the determinations of Asplund et al. (2005). These results sharpen and strengthen an earlier study by Antia and Basu (2005). The predicted solar neutrino fluxes are affected by the uncertainties in the composition by less than their 1sigma theoretical uncertainties.

Accepted for publication by ApJ. Minor editorial changes