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We explore what may be learned by close encounters between extrasolar minor bodies like `Oumuamua and the Sun. These encounters may yield strong constraints on the bulk composition and possible origin of `Oumuamua-like objects. We find that…
Spicules are plasma jets, observed in the dynamic interface region between the visible solar surface and the hot corona. At any given time, it is estimated that about 3 million spicules are present on the Sun. We find an intriguing parallel…
During the summer of 2019-20, while Australia suffered unprecedented bushfires across the country, false narratives regarding arson and limited backburning spread quickly on Twitter, particularly using the hashtag #ArsonEmergency.…
Recent observations of interplanetary scintillation (IPS) at radio frequencies have proved to be a powerful tool for probing the solar environment from the ground. But how far back does this tradition really extend? Our survey of the…
Recently, the study of the influence of solar activity on the Earth's climate received strong attention, mainly due to the possibility, proposed by several authors, that global warming is not anthropogenic, but is due to an increase in…
Swarming is a conspicuous behavioural trait observed in bird flocks, fish shoals, insect swarms and mammal herds. It is thought to improve collective awareness and offer protection from predators. Many current models involve the hypothesis…
The Sun has long been considered a constant star, to the extent that its total irradiance was termed the solar constant. It required radiometers in space to detect the small variations in solar irradiance on timescales of the solar rotation…
The alpha Centauri binary system, owing to its duplicity, proximity and brightness, and its components' likeness to the Sun, is a fundamental calibrating object for the theory of stellar structure and evolution and the determination of…
The solar cycle and its associated magnetic activity are the main drivers behind changes in the interplanetary environment and Earth's upper atmosphere (commonly referred to as space weather and climate). In recent years there has been an…
The Sun shrinks during solar maximum and regrows during solar minimum by a few kilometers. Here, we observe, for the first time, that the solar radius variation shows planetary relationship. This suggests that some remote planetary links…
We investigate solar activity by focusing on double maxima in solar cycles and try to estimate the shape of the current solar cycle (Cycle 24) during its maximum. We analyzed data for Solar Cycle 24 by using Learmonth Solar Observatory…
A review of solar cycle prediction methods and their performance is given, including forecasts for cycle 24 and focusing on aspects of the solar cycle prediction problem that have a bearing on dynamo theory. The scope of the review is…
A large variation in 14 C around AD 775 has been considered to be caused by one or more solar super-flares within one year. We critically review all known aurora reports from Europe as well as the Near, Middle, and Far East from AD 731 to…
Extensive aircraft cloud physical observations made in more than 2000 tropical cumulus clouds indicated new observational evidence viz., (1) horizontal structure of the air flow inside the cloud has consistent variations with successive…
An ancient solar observatory is composed by thirteen towers lined on a hill of a coastal desert of Peru. This is the Chankillo observatory. Here we discuss it, showing some simulations of the local sun direction. An analysis of the…
We have conducted a differential elemental abundance analysis of unprecedented accuracy (0.01 dex) of the Sun relative to 11 solar twins from the Hipparcos catalogue and 10 solar analogs from planet searches. We find that the Sun shows a…
Stellar coronal activity has been shown to persist into the low-mass star regime, down to late M-dwarf spectral types. However, there is now an accumulation of evidence suggesting that at the end of the main sequence there is a transition…
A long time-series of sunspot observations is preserved from Samuel Heinrich Schwabe who made notes and drawings of sunspots from 1825-1867. Schwabe's observing records are preserved in the manuscript archives of the Royal Astronomical…
It is customary to employ a semi-spherical scale model to describe the apparent path of the Sun across the sky, whether it be its diurnal motion or its variation throughout the year. A flat surface and three bent semi-rigid wires…
Various methods (or recipes) have been proposed to predict future solar activity levels - with mixed success. Among these, some precursor methods based upon quantities determined around or a few years before solar minimum have provided…