Solar cycle 10 was the tenth
solar cycle
The solar cycle, also known as the solar magnetic activity cycle, sunspot cycle, or Schwabe cycle, is a nearly periodic 11-year change in the Sun's activity measured in terms of variations in the number of observed sunspots on the Sun's surfa ...
since 1755, when extensive recording of solar
sunspot
Sunspots are phenomena on the Sun's photosphere that appear as temporary spots that are darker than the surrounding areas. They are regions of reduced surface temperature caused by concentrations of magnetic flux that inhibit convection. Sun ...
activity began.
[Kane, R.P. (2002).]
Some Implications Using the Group Sunspot Number Reconstruction
. ''Solar Physics'' 205(2), 383-401. The solar cycle lasted 11.3 years, beginning in December 1855 and ending in March 1867. The maximum
smoothed sunspot number
The Wolf number (also known as the relative sunspot number or Zürich number) is a quantity that measures the number of sunspots and groups of sunspots present on the surface of the Sun.
History
Astronomers have been observing the Sun recordi ...
observed during the solar cycle was 186.2 (February 1860), and the starting minimum was 6.0.
[SIDC Monthly Smoothed Sunspot Number.]
During the transit from solar cycle 10 to 11, there were a total of 406 days with no sunspots.
[Spotless Days.]
[What's Wrong with the Sun? (Nothing) more information: Spotless Days. ""][Solaemon's Spotless Days Page.]
The first observations of
solar flare
A solar flare is an intense localized eruption of electromagnetic radiation in the Sun's atmosphere. Flares occur in active regions and are often, but not always, accompanied by coronal mass ejections, solar particle events, and other solar phe ...
s, by
Richard Carrington
Richard Christopher Carrington (26 May 1826 – 27 November 1875) was an English amateur astronomer whose 1859 astronomical observations demonstrated the existence of solar flares as well as suggesting their electrical influence upon the Earth ...
and
Richard Hodgson
Richard Hodgson (born 1 October 1979) is an English former professional footballer.
Hodgson began his career as a trainee with Nottingham Forest, turning professional in October 1996. He was released in March 2000, having failed to break into ...
(independently), occurred during this cycle.
Solar storm of 1859
On September 1–2, 1859, the largest recorded
geomagnetic storm
A geomagnetic storm, also known as a magnetic storm, is a temporary disturbance of the Earth's magnetosphere caused by a solar wind shock wave and/or cloud of magnetic field that interacts with the Earth's magnetic field.
The disturbance that d ...
occurred in what would be known as the
Carrington Event
The Carrington Event was the most intense geomagnetic storm in recorded history, peaking from 1 to 2 September 1859 during solar cycle 10. It created strong auroral displays that were reported globally and caused sparking and even fires in mult ...
.
Aurorae
An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in polar regions of Earth, high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display ...
were seen around the world, even over the
Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
; those over the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...
were so bright that their glow awoke gold miners, who began preparing breakfast because they thought it was morning.
Telegraph
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
systems all over Europe and North America failed.
"The Great Storm: Solar Tempest of 1859 Revealed".
/ref> Telegraph pylons threw sparks and telegraph paper spontaneously caught fire. Some telegraph systems appeared to continue to send and receive messages despite having been disconnected from their power supplies.
On September 1, 1859, the first solar flare
A solar flare is an intense localized eruption of electromagnetic radiation in the Sun's atmosphere. Flares occur in active regions and are often, but not always, accompanied by coronal mass ejections, solar particle events, and other solar phe ...
was observed independently by Richard Carrington
Richard Christopher Carrington (26 May 1826 – 27 November 1875) was an English amateur astronomer whose 1859 astronomical observations demonstrated the existence of solar flares as well as suggesting their electrical influence upon the Earth ...
and Richard Hodgson
Richard Hodgson (born 1 October 1979) is an English former professional footballer.
Hodgson began his career as a trainee with Nottingham Forest, turning professional in October 1996. He was released in March 2000, having failed to break into ...
, the former of whom the event as a whole would be named after.
See also
*Solar variation
The solar cycle, also known as the solar magnetic activity cycle, sunspot cycle, or Schwabe cycle, is a nearly periodic 11-year change in the Sun's activity measured in terms of variations in the number of observed sunspots on the Sun's surfac ...
*List of solar cycles Solar cycles are nearly periodic 11-year changes in the Sun's activity that are based on the number of sunspots present on the Sun's surface. The first solar cycle conventionally is said to start in 1755 when Rudolf Wolf began extensive reporting o ...
References
{{Solar cycles
Solar cycles