News tagged with solar surface

Related topics: magnetic field

Sunspots could soon disappear for decades: study

(PhysOrg.com) -- Sunspot formation is triggered by a magnetic field, which scientists say is steadily declining. They predict that by 2016 there may be no remaining sunspots, and the sun may stay spotless ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Sep 15, 2010 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (55) | comments 576 | with audio podcast report

Kepler finds first earth-size planets beyond our solar system

(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Kepler mission has discovered the first Earth-size planets orbiting a sun-like star outside our solar system. The planets, called Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f, are too close to their star ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Dec 20, 2011 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (33) | comments 61 | with audio podcast

Water may not run uphill, but it practically flies off new surface

(PhysOrg.com) -- Engineering researchers have crafted a flat surface that refuses to get wet. Water droplets skitter across it like ball bearings tossed on ice. The inspiration? Not wax. Not glass. Not even Teflon.

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Feb 24, 2010 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (30) | comments 7 | with audio podcast

Our Sun: A Little Slow On the Uptake for Cycle 24

A very recent article carried by the BBC called, 'Quiet Sun Baffling Astronomers' sent me in a twitter of research activity. The BBC article's head notes include "The Sun is the Dimmest It Has Been for Nearly ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Apr 27, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (28) | comments 26 weblog

2008 Was Earth's Coolest Year Since 2000

(PhysOrg.com) -- Climatologists at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City have found that 2008 was the coolest year since 2000. The GISS analysis also showed that 2008 is the ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Feb 23, 2009 | popularity 4.1 / 5 (23) | comments 14

Long-standing sunspot puzzle solved

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the Universities of Glasgow, Strathclyde and Central Lancashire have used 21st Century solar observations and image processing to finally solve a sunspot puzzle first noticed ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Aug 19, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (20) | comments 4

Fab new laser nano-fabrication technology

(PhysOrg.com) -- Laser interference lithography can produce very high-resolution nano-scale surface patterns at low cost, and now European researchers have made important breakthroughs in the area.

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created May 07, 2010 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (17) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Study: Small fluctuations in solar activity, large influence on the climate

(PhysOrg.com) -- Subtle connections between the 11-year solar cycle, the stratosphere, and the tropical Pacific Ocean work in sync to generate periodic weather patterns that affect much of the globe, according ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Aug 27, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (16) | comments 9

How the Moon produces its own water

(PhysOrg.com) -- The Moon is a big sponge that absorbs electrically charged particles given out by the Sun. These particles interact with the oxygen present in some dust grains on the lunar surface, producing ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Oct 15, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (16) | comments 6

Folding light: Wrinkles and twists boost power from solar panels

Taking their cue from the humble leaf, researchers have used microscopic folds on the surface of photovoltaic material to significantly increase the power output of flexible, low-cost solar cells.

Physics / Optics & Photonics

created Apr 27, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (15) | comments 8 | with audio podcast

The lower atmosphere of Pluto revealed

(PhysOrg.com) -- "With lots of methane in the atmosphere, it becomes clear why Pluto's atmosphere is so warm," says Emmanuel Lellouch, lead author of the paper reporting the results.

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Mar 02, 2009 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (15) | comments 0

Plasmonic device converts light into electricity

(PhysOrg.com) -- While the most common device for converting light into electricity may be photovoltaic (PV) solar cells, a variety of other devices can perform the same light-to-electricity conversion, such ...

Nanotechnology / Nanophysics

created Nov 09, 2011 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (13) | comments 3 | with audio podcast feature

Tatooine-like planet discovered (w/ video)

(PhysOrg.com) -- Although cold and gaseous rather than a desert world, the newfound planet Kepler-16b is still the closest astronomers have come to discovering Luke Skywalker's home world of Tatooine. Like ...

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Sep 15, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (13) | comments 42 | with audio podcast

Ancient diatoms lead to new technology for solar energy

Engineers at Oregon State University have discovered a way to use an ancient life form to create one of the newest technologies for solar energy, in systems that may be surprisingly simple to build compared to existing silicon-based ...

Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials

created Apr 08, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (13) | comments 1

Trying to spot differences in the sun

The sun is the focus of a deepening mystery. Solar scientists want to know: Why is the sun so quiet?

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Jun 28, 2009 | popularity 4.1 / 5 (14) | comments 11