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Solar Luminosity

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Encyclopedia of Astrobiology

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Definition

The solar luminosity is defined as the total power emitted by the Sun in the form of electromagnetic radiation. The currently accepted value is 3.839 × 1026 W. This is the most common unit used to express the luminosities of other stars or bigger objects such as galaxies or clusters of galaxies. Note that the Sun is a weakly variable star, with its luminosity fluctuating periodically by about a part in a thousand over the 11-year solar (sunspot) cycle.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LESIA, Observatoire Paris-Site de Meudon, 5 Pl Jules Janssen, 92195, Meudon, France

    Daniel Rouan

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  1. Daniel Rouan
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Correspondence to Daniel Rouan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Ricardo Amils

  2. Labo. d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux (LAB), Observatoire Aquitain des Sciences de l'Univers (OASU), Floirac CX, France

    Muriel Gargaud

  3. Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), Inst. Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial, Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain

    José Cernicharo Quintanilla

  4. Geophysical Lab., Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

    Henderson James Cleaves

  5. Astronomy Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA

    William M. Irvine

  6. Dépt. Sc. de la Terre et de l’Atmosphère, Université du Québec, Montréal, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    Daniele Pinti

  7. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiale (CNES) DPI/E2U, Paris CX, France

    Michel Viso

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© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Rouan, D. (2014). Solar Luminosity. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1457-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1457-3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics

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