Related papers: The Journey of the Sun
The interstellar cloud surrounding the solar system regulates the galactic environment of the Sun and constrains the physical characteristics of the interplanetary medium. This paper compares interstellar dust grain properties observed…
The galactic environment of the Sun varies over short timescales as the Sun and interstellar clouds travel through space. Small variations in the dynamics, ionization, density, and magnetic field strength of the interstellar medium (ISM)…
Over the recent past, the galactic environment of the Sun has differed substantially from today. Sometime within the past ~130,000 years, and possibly as recent as ~56,000 years ago, the Sun entered the tenuous tepid partially ionized…
Recent studies have shown that the local environment of the Sun is a complex one with the presence of several supernova shock bubbles and interstellar clouds. Even within this environment, the Sun is moving with a velocity of about 15 km/s…
The interaction of the heliosphere with interstellar clouds has attracted interest since the late 1920's, both with a view to explaining apparent quasi-periodic climate "catastrophes" as well as periodic mass extinctions. Until recently,…
The importance of understanding the current and historical galactic environments of cool stars is discussed. The penetration of interstellar gas into a stellar astrosphere is a function of the interaction of the star with the interstellar…
The interstellar cloud surrounding the solar system regulates the galactic environment of the Sun, and determines the boundary conditions of the heliosphere. Both the Sun and interstellar clouds move through space, so these boundary…
Interstellar material surrounding an extrasolar planetary system interacts with the stellar wind to form the stellar astrosphere, and regulates the properties of the interplanetary medium and cosmic ray fluxes throughout the system.…
Combined heliosphere-astronomical data and models enrich our understanding both of effects the solar galactic environment might have on the inner heliosphere, and of interstellar clouds. Present data suggest that FeII/DI increases toward…
At present, the heliosphere is embedded in a warm low density interstellar cloud that belongs to a cloud system flowing through the local standard of rest with a velocity near ~18 km/s. The velocity structure of the nearest interstellar…
On its journey through the Galaxy, the Sun passes through diverse regions of the interstellar medium. High-resolution spectroscopic measurements of interstellar absorption lines in spectra of nearby stars show absorption components from…
Recent research raises the possibility that 3 and 7 million years ago, the Sun encountered massive clouds that shrank the heliosphere--the solar cocoon protecting our solar system--exposing Earth to its interstellar environment, in…
Our solar system's path has recently been shown to potentially intersect dense interstellar clouds 2 and 7 million years ago: the Local Lynx of Cold Cloud and the edge of the Local Bubble. These clouds compressed the heliosphere, directly…
Speculations that encounters with interstellar clouds modify the terrestrial climate have appeared in the scientific literature for over 85 years. This article introduces a series of articles that seek to give substance to these…
The physical properties and kinematics of the partially ionized interstellar material near the Sun are typical of warm diffuse clouds in the solar vicinity. The interstellar magnetic field at the heliosphere and the kinematics of nearby…
Because of the dynamic nature of the interstellar medium, the Sun should have encountered a variety of different interstellar environments in its lifetime. As the solar wind interacts with the surrounding interstellar medium to form a…
During the solar journey through galactic space, variations in the physical properties of the surrounding interstellar medium (ISM) modify the heliosphere and modulate the flux of galactic cosmic rays (GCR) at the surface of the Earth, with…
The development of our understanding of the gaseous component of the interstellar medium is reviewed. During the 20th century our picture of diffuse material in space has grown from a simple model of isolated clouds in thermal equilibrium…
The Sun's outer atmosphere is heated to temperatures of millions of degrees, and solar plasma flows out into interplanetary space at supersonic speeds. This paper reviews our current understanding of these interrelated problems: coronal…
It is expected that as the Sun travels through the interstellar medium (ISM), there will be different filtration of Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCR) that affect Earth. The effect of GCR on Earth's atmosphere and climate is still uncertain.…