Encyclopedia of the sun

In less than a decade three modern spacecraft nave provided more important new information about the Sun than the entire previous century of observations. Instruments have extended our gaze far from the visible, spanning a spectrum running from radio waves to gamma rays. The Sun is under continuous observation, every nuance of its changing behavior captured by state-of-the-art technology.

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the Sun is a complete modern guide to this fire of life, our nearest star. It provides comprehensive accounts of the most recent discoveries, such as the neutrino observations which may be revealing a completely new physics. A description of the use of sound waves to peer deep into the Sun's inner regions and measure temperature right down to the central nuclear reactor is included, and the awesome ejections of matter from the Sun's outer regions and their potential threat to Earth are also discussed.

This reference work is completed by a full bibliography, a list of internet sites, and a glossary so comprehensive as to constitute a dictionary of solar astronomy.

Contents

• The Sun's domain
• The Sun as a star
• What makes the Sun shine ?
• Inside the Sun
• The magnetic solar atmosphere
• The explosive Sun
• The Sun's winds
• The Sun-Earth connection
• Observing the Sun
• Index