Related papers: The sunspot observations by Toaldo and Comparetti …

Three Japanese sunspot drawings associated with Iwahashi Zenbei (1756-1811) are shown here from contemporary manuscripts and woodprint documents with the relevant texts. We revealed the observational date of one of the drawings to be 26…

An analysis of the sunspot observations made by Hevelius during 1642-1645 is presented. These records are the only systematic sunspot observations just before the Maunder Minimum. We have studied different phenomena meticulously recorded by…

We have recovered the sunspot observations made by David E. Hadden during 1890-1931 from Alta, Iowa. We have digitized the available data published by Hadden in different astronomical journals. This data series have been analyzed and…

We revisited the sunspot observations published by Johannes Hevelius in his book Machina Coelestis (1679) corresponding to the period 1653-1675 (just in the middle of the Maunder Minimum). We show detailed translations of the original Latin…

The number of spots on the surface of the Sun is one of the best tracers of solar variability we have. The sunspot number is not only known to change in phase with the 11-year solar cycles, but also to show variability on longer time…

In this work, we present an extensive review and detailed analysis of sunspot measurements, drawings, and engravings made by John Flamsteed and, mainly, by Philippe de La Hire during the Maunder minimum. All available information and…

Our knowledge of the long-term evolution of solar activity and of its primary modulation, the 11-year cycle, largely depends on a single direct observational record: the visual sunspot counts that retrace the last 4 centuries, since the…

The Maunder Minimum was the period between 1645 and 1715 whose main characteristic was abnormally low and prolonged solar activity. However, some authors have doubted this low level of solar activity during that period by questioning the…

Solar activity is an important driver of long-term climate trends and must be accounted for in climate models. Unfortunately, direct measurements of this quantity over long periods do not exist. The only observation related to solar…

Extending the knowledge about the properties of solar cycles into the past is essential for understanding the solar dynamo. This paper aims at estimating areas of sunspots observed by Schwabe in 1825-1867 and at calculating the tilt angles…

In the 19th century, several astronomers made observations of sunspots, recording their positions and sometimes their areas. These observations were published in the form of extensive tables, but have been unhelpful until now. Three of…

We revise the sunspot observations made by Galileo Galilei and Christoph Scheiner in the context of their controversy on the nature of sunspots. Their sunspot records not included in the current sunspot group database, used as a basis to…

Records of sunspots and aurora observations in pre-telescopic historical documents can provide useful information about solar activity in the past. This is also true for extreme space weather events, as they may have been recorded as large…

We have examined the more than 1100 drawings of the solar disk made by the German astronomy amateur Johann Caspar Staudach during 1749-1799 and counted the spots on each image. Using the modern perception of how to group spots into active…

As we are heading towards the next solar cycle, presumably with a relatively small amplitude, it is of significant interest to reconstruct and describe the past grand minima on the basis of actual observations of the time. The Dalton…

Sunspot engravings and measurements in 1660-1676 are analyzed to retrieve sunspot area and heliocoordinates. Based on these data, we revise the Hoyt and Schatten (The role of the sun in climate change, 1997) hypothesis of long-lived…

The correct interpretation of a fragment of Rheita about a sunspot observation in 1642 has crucial importance in estimating the amplitude of the solar cycle just before the Maunder Minimum. We show here that this record has been…

The Maunder minimum (MM) of greatly reduced solar activity took place in 1645-1715, but the exact level of sunspot activity is uncertain as based, to a large extent, on historical generic statements of the absence of spots on the Sun. Here…

We revisit the sunspot drawings made by the Japanese astronomer Kunitomo Toubei during 1835-1836 and recount the sunspot group number for each image. There are two series of drawings, preliminary (P, containing 17 days with observations)…

Large sunspots can be observed with the unaided eye under suitable atmospheric seeing conditions. Such observations are of particular value because the frequency of their appearance provides an approximate indication of the prevailing level…