Begriffe und Abkürzungen

Here, terms are explained that are often used when it comes to the topic of the sun and auroras. Is something missing? Then just contact us!

ACE (Advanced Composition Explorer) is a satellite operating since 1997. It is positioned at the Lagrange point 1 between Earth and the Sun and provides us with important measurement data from the solar wind. These include, for example, the strength and orientation of the interplanetary magnetic field, solar wind speed, proton density, etc.

The Bz-value is a measure for the magnetic field strength of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field in the direction of the Z-axis and is given in nanotesla (nT). The lower (negative) the value, the more likely the occurrence of the aurora borealis in Germany.

CME is the English abbreviation for Coronal Mass Ejection. See KMA.

DSCOVR is an observation satellite and the official successor to the ACE satellite (See ACE). DSCOVR stands for Deep Space Climate Observatory.

DST-Index stands for Disturbance Storm Time Index.

When the visible CME in the recordings from LASCO C2/C3 of the ACE satellite completely covers the sun's disk, it is called a Full Halo CME. Here is a more detailed explanation.

IMF stands for the interplanetary magnetic field and describes the magnetic field that originates from the Sun and permeates our solar system.

The impact refers to the arrival of a CME on Earth.

When a slow CME is overtaken by a faster CME and both mass ejections overlap, it is called a cannibalCME. It is debated what effects these cannibals have on the individual components, and consequently on the geomagnetic activity.

KMA (eng. CME) stands for Coronal Mass Ejection (engl. Coronal Mass Ejection) and is a particle cloud consisting of protons, electrons, X-rays, and gamma radiation. The particle cloud is generated due to flares or filament eruptions. If a CME hits the Earth, bright auroras can occur.

LD stands for Long Duration. This means something like long-lasting. An LD flare is ultimately nothing but an X-ray flare that lasts for several hours. LD flares can generate strong and rapid mass ejections that can lead to auroras.

A Magnetic Crochet (or Solar Flare Effect, SFE) is an effect where the atmosphere is ionized by X-ray radiation. As a result, the magnetometers on Earth show slight deviations at the time of the flare. Magnetic Crochets are very rare as they can only be observed during strong and long-lasting flares.

MM is a commonly used abbreviation for Magnetometer.

This is a commonly used abbreviation for Aurora.

SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) is a satellite for solar observation that has been operating in space since 1995. It is located about 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth and transmits "in real-time" important images and data to Earth. For example, after the occurrence of an X-ray flare, it can be determined whether there was a CME or not. Official website of SOHO.

SFE is the abbreviation for Solar Flare Effect. See Magnetic Crochet.

The term "solar storm" is often used by the media and within the esoteric scene, but it is not scientifically correct. Often a geomagnetic storm is meant when speaking of a "solar storm". Sometimes, however, flares or the solar wind are also meant.

SWPC stands for Space Weather Prediction Center, an organization of NASA for space weather forecasting.

In the word TenFlare is the English word Ten (Ger. Ten) and Flare. Flares emit radio waves over a wide frequency range, i.e., they cover a large frequency spectrum. These radio waves can be measured as "noise". One of the significant frequencies is the wavelength range of 10.7cm (2695 MHz). When the strength of the flare noise exceeds the natural background noise, it is called a TenFlare. The more intense it is, the stronger the flare is.