Eliminate an unexpected mesh line

Question

What is the source of the vertical mesh (ring) in this figure and how does one eliminate it?

SphericalPlot3D[
 Abs[.5 + Sin[2 ϕ]/2] Sin[θ] +
  Abs[.5 + Sin[2 (ϕ + π/2)]/2] Sin[θ],
 {θ, 0, π}, {ϕ, 0, 2 π},
 PlotStyle -> {Opacity[0.3], Yellow},
 BoxRatios -> {1, 1, 1/2},
 MeshFunctions -> {#3 &},
 Mesh -> 5,
 MeshStyle -> Blue]

Answer 1

The blue line occurs at the edge of the function, where ϕ wraps from 2π to 0. We can get rid of it by adding BoundaryStyle -> None:

SphericalPlot3D[
 Abs[.5 + Sin[2 ϕ]/2] Sin[θ] + 
  Abs[.5 + Sin[2 (ϕ + π/2)]/2] Sin[θ], {θ, 
  0, π}, {ϕ, 0, 2 π}, 
 PlotStyle -> {Opacity[0.3], Yellow}, BoxRatios -> {1, 1, 1/2}, 
 MeshFunctions -> {#3 &}, Mesh -> 5, MeshStyle -> Blue, 
 BoundaryStyle -> None]