Abstract
Twenty-five-year records of relative Caii H and K emission fluxes of lower Main-Sequence stars have been measured at Mount Wilson Observatory and reveal surface activity in most of the older G- and K-type dwarf stars that is similar to the aperiodical activity cycle of the contemporary Sun (i.e., the cyclic and the occasional episode of reduced activity in the past few centuries). We find an inverse relationship between the amplitude of the activity cycle and the length of the cycle for the ensemble of those solar-type stars. We also find a similar relationship using the 250-year sunspot record (Cycles 1 to 21). The similarity between the two inverse relationships for the solar-type stars observed for 25 years and the Sun for a longer interval of time may suggest one common underlying physical mechanism that is responsible for the variations in surface activity ranging from decades to centuries.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Babcock, H. W.: 1961,Astrophys. J. 133, 572.
Baliunas, S. L.: 1991, in C. P. Sonett, M. S. Giampapa, and M. S. Matthews (eds.),The Sun in Time, The University of Arizona Press, Tucson, p. 809.
Balthasar, H., Vázquez, M., and Wöhl, H.: 1986,Astron. Astrophys. 155, 87.
Beer, J., Blinov, A., Bonani, G., Finkel, R. C., Hofmann, H. J., Lehmann, B., Oeschger, H., Sigg, A., Schwander, J., Staffelbach, T., Stauffer, B., Suter, M., and Wölfli, W.: 1990,Nature 347, 164.
Belvedere, G., Pidatella, R. M., and Proctor, M. R. E.: 1990,Geophys Astrophys. Fluid Dynamics 51, 263.
Damon, P. E. and Sonett, C. P.: 1991, in C. P. Sonett, M. S. Giampapa, and M. S. Matthews (eds.),The Sun in Time, The University of Arizona, Tucson, p. 360.
Dicke, R. H.: 1988,Solar Phys. 115, 171.
Eddy, J. A.: 1976,Science 192, 1189.
Gleissberg, W.: 1944,Terrest. Magn. Atmos. Electr. 49, 243.
Hale, G. E.: 1908,Astrophys. J. 28, 315.
Horne, J. H. and Baliunas, S. L.: 1986,Astrophys. J. 302, 757.
Leighton, R. B.: 1959,Astrophys. J. 130, 366.
Middlekoop, F.: 1982,Astron. Astrophys. 107, 31.
Noyes, R. W., Hartmann, L. W., Baliunas, S. L., Duncan, D. K., and Vaughan, A. H.: 1984,Astrophys. J. 279, 763.
Radick, R. R., Lockwood, G. W., and Baliunas, S. L.: 1990,Science 247, 39.
Schmalz, S. and Stix, M.: 1991,Astron. Astrophys. 245, 654.
Schrijver, C. J. and Harvey, K. L.: 1989,Astrophys. J. 343, 481.
Schrijver, C. J., Cote, J., Zwaan, C., and Saar, S. H.: 1989,Astrophys. J. 337, 964.
Sheeley, N. R., Jr.: 1967,Astrophys. J. 147, 1106.
Skumanich, A., Smythe, C., and Frazier, E. N.: 1975,Astrophys. J. 200, 747.
Soderblom, D. R., Duncan, D. K., and Johnson, D. R.: 1991,Astrophys. J. 375, 722.
Soon, W. H., Baliunas, S. L., and Zhang, Q.: 1993,Astrophys. J. 414, L33.
Vaughan, A. H.: 1980,Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific 92, 392.
Vaughan, A. H., Preston, G. W., and Wilson, O. C.: 1978,Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific 90, 267.
Vaughan, A., Baliunas, S. L., Middlekoop, F., Hartman, L. W., Mihalas, D., Noyes, R. W., and Preston, G. W.: 1981,Astrophys. J. 250, 276.
Waldmeier, M.: 1961,The Sunspot Activity in the Years 1610–1960, Schulthess, Zürich.
Weiss, N. O., Cattaneo, F., and Jones, C. A.: 1984,Geophys. Astrophys. Fluid Dynamics 30, 305.
White, O. R. and Livingston, W. C.: 1981,Astrophys. J. 249, 798.
White, O. R., Skumanich, A., Lean J., Livingston, W. C., and Keil, S. L.: 1992,Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific 104, 1139.
Wilson, O. C.: 1978,Astrophys. J. 226, 379.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Also at Center for Excellence in Information Systems at Tennessee State University.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Soon, W.H., Baliunas, S.L. & Zhang, Q. Variations in surface activity of the sun and solar-type stars. Sol Phys 154, 385–391 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00681107
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00681107