Searches for Time Variation in the TeV Cosmic-Ray Anisotropy

There is an observed anisotropy in the arrival direction distribution of cosmic rays in the TeV-PeV regime with variations on the scale of one part in a thousand. While the origin of this anisotropy is an open question, a possible factor is cosmic-ray interactions with interstellar and heliospheric magnetic fields. These magnetic fields may change over time - for example, due to changes in solar activity throughout its 11-year solar cycle. The cosmic-ray anisotropy can reflect these time-dependent magnetic fields. In addition to these possible sources, there are several known sources of time variation in this anisotropy, such as the Compton-Getting Effect from the Earth's orbital motion as well as the cosmic-ray Sun Shadow. We present a general, model-independent method to detect time variations in the cosmic-ray anisotropy. The methodology is then validated using cosmic-ray data taken by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory from 2012 through 2023.