NEWS RELEASE
July 29 2003
The
magnetic personality of our hottest star
To
the untrained eye, the sun appears a tranquil, constant and benign
presence in our Universe. Did
you know, for example, that while the light surface of the Sun (visible
from Earth) has a temperature of 6000 degrees, the corona is at a
temperature of two million degrees!
Dr
Robert Walsh, a senior lecturer in Astrophysics at the University of
Central Lancashire is investigating a long-running solar mystery. His
solar physics research into the halo of electrified gases (called the
corona) that surround the Sun is uncovering fascinating information about
the Sun’s strong magnetic field.
In
a talk at the University of South
Australia, Mawson Lakes Campus, on July 29th at 7.30pm Dr Walsh will
explain how the sun’s strong magnetic field creates a wealth of exotic
solar phenomena.
“The
problem is like an Astrophysics X-file!, It is totally counter-intuitive
that the Sun’s temperature should rise as you move away from its
surface...it’s like walking away from a fire and suddenly hitting a
hotspot, thousands of times hotter than the fire itself”, Dr. Walsh
says.
Dr Walsh’s
research shows that it’s the Sun’s magnetic field that causes this
phenomenon.
Dr
Walsh will demonstrate the importance of the Sun’s ‘magnetic
personality’ as well as sharing his wealth of knowledge about this
most-important star. He will show the fury of solar storms, as well as how
space weather affects Planet Earth - in good ways, and bad!
Dr
Walsh is a winner of the prestigious title of “scientist of the new
century” after delivering the winning lecture in the recent millennium
series of Royal Institution Lectures.
More
information: Wayne Looker (08) 8302 5228
Need an expert? Find one at UniSA’s online
Directory of Experts - http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/MDU/MDU-search.asp
.
