The Sun, Solar Analogs and the Climate Saas-Fee Advanced Course 34, 2004. Swiss Society for Astrophysics and Astronomy

About this book

This book presents the lecture notes of the 34th Saas-Fee Advanced Course "The Sun, Solar Analogs and the Climate" given by leading scientists in the field. Emphasis is on the observed variability of the Sun and the present understanding of the variability's origin as well as its impact on the Earth's climate. The solar variability is then studied in the broader context of solar-type stars, allowing for better understanding of the solar-activity cycle and the magnetic activity in general. This book provides an accessible and up-to-date introduction to the field for graduate students and serves as a modern source of reference for active researchers in this field.

Contents

The Earth's Climate and its Response to Solar Variability: The Climate System * Atmospheric Dynamics, Modes of Variability and Climate Modelling * Climate Records * Radiative Processes in the Atmosphere * The Greenhouse Effect and Radiative Forcing of Climate Change * Clouds * Atmospheric Photochemistry * Response of Climate to Variations in Solar Irradiance * The Earth's Electric Field and Ionisation of the Atmosphere * Conclusions * Solar Outputs, Their Variations and Their Effects on Earth: Introduction to the Sun and the Solar Activity Cycle * Fundamental Plasma Physics of the Sun and Heliosphere * The Heliosphere, Cosmic Rays and Cosmogenic Isotopes * Solar Irradiance Variations * Variability on Century Timescales * Implications for Earth's Climate * Conclusions and Implications * Stellar Analogs of Solar Activity: The Sun in A Stellar Context: Introduction * Stellar Cycles * Brightness Changes in Solar-Type Stars * Activity in Solar Analogs * Stellar Surface Inhomogeneities * The Coronae of Solar Analogs, Low Mass Stars, and Brown Dwarfs * The Early Sun * Stellar Activity and Extrasolar Planets * Index.

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