Although the causal chain is by no means straightforward, variations among solar minima observed in the solar atmosphere and heliosphere must ultimately arise from the capricious nature of the dynamo operating in the solar interior. Given the highly turbulent conditions in the solar envelope, cha... Show moreAlthough the causal chain is by no means straightforward, variations among solar minima observed in the solar atmosphere and heliosphere must ultimately arise from the capricious nature of the dynamo operating in the solar interior. Given the highly turbulent conditions in the solar envelope, chaotic temporal variation should be expected. A deep understanding of long-term solar variability must come from a conceptual synthesis between the inherent disorder of a turbulent dynamo as manifested by the magnetic carpet and the patent order exhibited by the solar activity cycle. This is the dynamo dialectic, thesis-antithesis-synthesis; the solar dynamo is cyclic, the solar dynamo is chaotic, the solar dynamo is both. I will review our current understanding of how order and chaos coexist in the Sun based on simplified but illustrative systems including both mean-field dynamo models and 3D MHD convection simulations. Show less
