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Starspot
Starspots are stellar phenomena, so-named by analogy with sunspots. Spots as small as sunspots have not been detected on other stars, as they would cause undetectably small fluctuations in brightness. The commonly observed starspots are in general much larger than those on the Sun: up to about 30% of the stellar surface may be covered, corresponding to starspots 100 times larger than those on the Sun. Detection and measurements To detect and measure the extent of starspots one uses several types of methods. *For rapidly rotating stars – Doppler imaging and Zeeman-Doppler imaging. With the Zeeman-Doppler imaging technique the direction of the magnetic field on stars can be determined since spectral lines are split according to the Zeeman effect, revealing the direction and magnitude of the field. *For slowly rotating stars – Line Depth Ratio (LDR). Here one measures two different spectral lines, one sensitive to temperature and one which is not. Since starspots have a lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sunspot
Sunspots are phenomena on the Sun's photosphere that appear as temporary spots that are darker than the surrounding areas. They are regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic flux that inhibit convection. Sunspots appear within active regions, usually in pairs of opposite magnetic polarity. Their number varies according to the approximately 11-year solar cycle. Individual sunspots or groups of sunspots may last anywhere from a few days to a few months, but eventually decay. Sunspots expand and contract as they move across the surface of the Sun, with diameters ranging from to . Larger sunspots can be visible from Earth without the aid of a telescope. They may travel at relative speeds, or proper motions, of a few hundred meters per second when they first emerge. Indicating intense magnetic activity, sunspots accompany other active region phenomena such as coronal loops, prominences, and reconnection events. Most solar flares and co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Doppler Imaging
Inhomogeneous structures on stellar surfaces, i.e. temperature differences, chemical composition or magnetic fields, create characteristic distortions in the spectral lines due to the Doppler effect. These distortions will move across spectral line profiles due to the stellar rotation. The technique to reconstruct these structures on the stellar surface is called Doppler-imaging, often based on the maximum entropy image reconstruction to find the stellar image. This technique gives the smoothest and simplest image that is consistent with observations. To understand the magnetic field and activity of stars, studies of the Sun are not sufficient; studies of other stars are necessary. Periodic changes in brightness have long been observed in stars which indicate cooler or brighter starspots on the surface. These spots are larger than the ones on the Sun, covering up to 20% of the star. Spots with similar size as the ones on the Sun would hardly give rise to changes in intensity. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RS Canum Venaticorum Variable
An RS Canum Venaticorum variable is a type of variable star. The variable type consists of close binary stars having active chromospheres which can cause large stellar spots. These spots are believed to cause variations in their observed luminosity. Systems can exhibit variations on timescales of years due to variation in the spot surface coverage fraction, as well as periodic variations which are, in general, close to the orbital period of the binary system. Some systems exhibit variations in luminosity due to their being eclipsing binaries. Typical brightness fluctuation is around 0.2 magnitudes. They take their name from the star RS Canum Venaticorum (abbreviated RS CVn). Otto Struve (1946) first called attention to the group, but it was Oliver (1974) who was the first to formally propose a set of observational characteristics to define the RS CVn criteria. The working definition, as it is used today, was that set down by Hall (1976). Berdyuginabr>2.4 RS CVn stars/ref> Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phenomena
A phenomenon ( : phenomena) is an observable event. The term came into its modern philosophical usage through Immanuel Kant, who contrasted it with the noumenon, which ''cannot'' be directly observed. Kant was heavily influenced by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz in this part of his philosophy, in which phenomenon and noumenon serve as interrelated technical terms. Far predating this, the ancient Greek Pyrrhonist philosopher Sextus Empiricus also used ''phenomenon'' and ''noumenon'' as interrelated technical terms. Common usage In popular usage, a ''phenomenon'' often refers to an extraordinary event. The term is most commonly used to refer to occurrences that at first defy explanation or baffle the observer. According to the ''Dictionary of Visual Discourse'':In ordinary language 'phenomenon/phenomena' refer to any occurrence worthy of note and investigation, typically an untoward or unusual event, person or fact that is of special significance or otherwise notable. Philosoph ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Photosphere
The photosphere is a star's outer shell from which light is radiated. The term itself is derived from Ancient Greek roots, φῶς, φωτός/''phos, photos'' meaning "light" and σφαῖρα/''sphaira'' meaning "sphere", in reference to it being a spherical surface that is perceived to emit light. It extends into a star's surface until the plasma becomes opaque, equivalent to an optical depth of approximately , or equivalently, a depth from which 50% of light will escape without being scattered. A photosphere is the deepest region of a luminous object, usually a star, that is transparent to photons of certain wavelengths. Temperature The surface of a star is defined to have a temperature given by the effective temperature in the Stefan–Boltzmann law. Stars, except neutron stars, have no solid or liquid surface. Therefore, the photosphere is typically used to describe the Sun's or another star's visual surface. Composition of the Sun The Sun is composed primarily ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of St Andrews
(Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment = £117.7 million (2021) , budget = £286.6 million (2020–21) , chancellor = The Lord Campbell of Pittenweem , rector = Leyla Hussein , principal = Sally Mapstone , academic_staff = 1,230 (2020) , administrative_staff = 1,576 , students = () , undergrad = () , postgrad = () , doctoral = , other = , city = St Andrews , state = , country = Scotland , coordinates = , campus = College town , colours = United College, St Andrews St Mary's College School of Medicine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HD 166620
HR 6806 is a solitary, orange, main sequence, and Sun-like (K2 V) star located thirty-six light-years away, in the constellation Hercules. The star is smaller than the Sun, with around 79% of the solar mass and radius, and 35% of the solar luminosity. It appears to be rotating slowly with an estimated period of 42 days. In 1988, it was noticed that the star had an inactive chromosphere, with a surface magnetic field strength of only 1,500 G. From 1990 activity in the chromosphere increased, inline with a 16 year stellar cycle previously observed. But, sometime after 1994 (exact date unknown because of a data collection gap between 1995 and 2004) chromospheric activity greatly reduced, and has stayed flat for more than 16 years. the star appears to have entered the equivalent of a Maunder minimum. The star is around six billion years of age. There was suspected to be a nearby very cool, and very dim, T9 to Y brown dwarf Brown dwarfs (also called failed st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
51 Pegasi B
51 Pegasi b, officially named Dimidium , and formerly unofficially dubbed Bellerophon , is an extrasolar planet approximately away in the constellation of Pegasus. It was the first exoplanet to be discovered orbiting a main-sequence star, the Sun-like 51 Pegasi, and marked a breakthrough in astronomical research. It is the prototype for a class of planets called hot Jupiters. In 2017, traces of water were discovered in the planet's atmosphere. In 2019, the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded in part for the discovery of 51 Pegasi b. Name 51 Pegasi is the Flamsteed designation of the host star. The planet was originally designated 51 Pegasi b by Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz, who discovered the planet in December 1995. The following year it was unofficially dubbed "Bellerophon" by astronomer Geoffrey Marcy, who followed the convention of naming planets after Greek and Roman mythological figures ( Bellerophon was a figure from Greek mythology who rode the winged ho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Differential Rotation
Differential rotation is seen when different parts of a rotating object move with different angular velocities (rates of rotation) at different latitudes and/or depths of the body and/or in time. This indicates that the object is not solid. In fluid objects, such as accretion disks, this leads to shearing. Galaxies and protostars usually show differential rotation; examples in the Solar System include the Sun, Jupiter and Saturn. Around the year 1610, Galileo Galilei observed sunspots and calculated the rotation of the Sun. In 1630, Christoph Scheiner reported that the Sun had different rotational periods at the poles and at the equator, in good agreement with modern values. The cause of differential rotation Stars and planets rotate in the first place because conservation of angular momentum turns random drifting of parts of the molecular cloud that they form from into rotating motion as they coalesce. Given this average rotation of the whole body, internal differential ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stellar Classification
In astronomy, stellar classification is the classification of stars based on their spectral characteristics. Electromagnetic radiation from the star is analyzed by splitting it with a prism or diffraction grating into a spectrum exhibiting the rainbow of colors interspersed with spectral lines. Each line indicates a particular chemical element or molecule, with the line strength indicating the abundance of that element. The strengths of the different spectral lines vary mainly due to the temperature of the photosphere, although in some cases there are true abundance differences. The ''spectral class'' of a star is a short code primarily summarizing the ionization state, giving an objective measure of the photosphere's temperature. Most stars are currently classified under the Morgan–Keenan (MK) system using the letters ''O'', ''B'', ''A'', ''F'', ''G'', ''K'', and ''M'', a sequence from the hottest (''O'' type) to the coolest (''M'' type). Each letter class is then subdivi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_2007-04-30_T001456.gif "Click for more on -> Sunspot")
