Our Mysterious and Variable Sun

   (Discovering the Electric Sun – Part 2) Quantification It is the general agreement between theory and observation that provides the foundation for quantification. Specialized inquiry can then test the rigor and precision of the qualitative argument with equations and numbers. In a successful test, the quantitative results will correlate…

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Magnetic Effervescence

Dec 08, 2011 “Bubbles” of magnetic energy are said to surround the Sun’s heliosheath. “In all our quest of greatness, like wanton boys, whose pastime is their care, we follow after bubbles, blown in the air.” — John Webster According to astronomer Merav Opher of Boston University’s Voyager team: “The…

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Twist and Shout

Dec 07, 2011 Alfvén waves are said to carry heat from the Sun’s photosphere out to its corona. “Giant twisting waves” have been detected in the Sun’s lower atmosphere, prompting heliophysicists to speculate that they are transporting heat energy upward from lower levels into the solar corona. Why the corona…

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Essential Guide to the EU – Chapter 6
Currents, Filaments and Pinches

6.1  Thermal Motion and Current It is important to distinguish between random thermal motion and uniform linear motion in a plasma. The latter is an electric current which flows due to the presence of an electric field. The random thermal motion is measured by the temperature of the plasma, or…

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