Starship Asterisk*

[img3="Coronal bright points identified in images of the Sun taken simultaenously from three distinct vantage points in space. From left, images were captured by STEREO-Behind, SDO, and STEREO-Ahead. (Credit: Scott McIntosh, NCAR)"]https://www2.ucar.edu/sites/default/fil ... ts%202.png[/img3][hr][/hr]

The same kind of large-scale planetary waves that meander through the atmosphere high above Earth's surface may also exist on the Sun, according to a new study led by a scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).

Just as the large-scale waves that form on Earth, known as Rossby waves, influence local weather patterns, the waves discovered on the Sun may be intimately tied to solar activity, including the formation of sunspots, active regions, and the eruption of solar flares.

"The discovery of magnetized Rossby waves on the Sun offers the tantalizing possibility that we can predict space weather much further in advance," ...

• Nature Astronomy 1:0086 (27 Mar 2017) DOI: 10.1038/s41550-017-0086