Concept
Sunspot
Related concepts (33)
Flare star
A flare star is a variable star that can undergo unpredictable dramatic increases in brightness for a few minutes. It is believed that the flares on flare stars are analogous to solar flares in that they are due to the magnetic energy stored in the stars' atmospheres. The brightness increase is across the spectrum, from X-rays to radio waves. Flare activity among late-type stars was first reported by A. van Maanen in 1945, for WX UMa and YZ CMi. However, the best-known flare star is UV Ceti, first observed to flare in 1948.
Angelo Secchi
Angelo Secchi (ˈandʒelo ˈsekki; 28 June 1818 – 26 February 1878) was an Italian Catholic priest, astronomer from the Italian region of Emilia. He was director of the observatory at the Pontifical Gregorian University (then called the Roman College) for 28 years. He was a pioneer in astronomical spectroscopy, and was one of the first scientists to state authoritatively that the Sun is a star. Secchi was born in Reggio Emilia, where he studied at the Jesuit gymnasium. At the age of 16, he entered the Jesuit Order in Rome.
Hale's law
In solar physics, Hale's law, also known as Hale's polarity law or the Hale–Nicholson law, describes the tendency for bipolar active regions within the same northern or southern hemisphere to have the same leading magnetic polarity with respect to the solar rotation, and for those in the opposite hemisphere to have the opposite leading polarity. It further describes how this pattern reverses from one sunspot cycle to the next. It is named after George Ellery Hale and Seth Barnes Nicholson.