Transition of the Sunspot Number from Zurich to Brussels in 1980: A Personal Perspective

The Swiss Federal Observatory, which had been founded in 1863 by Rudolf Wolf, was dissolved in connection with the retirement of Max Waldmeier in 1979. The determination of the Zurich sunpot number, which had been a cornerstone activity of the observatory, was then discontinued by ETH Zurich. A smoo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Solar physics 2016-11, Vol.291 (9-10), p.2487-2492
Main Author: Stenflo, J. O.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astrophysics and Astroparticles
Atmospheric Sciences
Discontinuity
Physics
Physics and Astronomy
Retirement
Solar cycle
Solar physics
Space Exploration and Astronautics
Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics
Sunspot Number Recalibration
Sunspots
Time series
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Summary:The Swiss Federal Observatory, which had been founded in 1863 by Rudolf Wolf, was dissolved in connection with the retirement of Max Waldmeier in 1979. The determination of the Zurich sunpot number, which had been a cornerstone activity of the observatory, was then discontinued by ETH Zurich. A smooth transition of the responsibility for the sunspot number from Zurich to Brussels was achieved in 1980, however, through which it was possible to avoid a discontinuity in this important time series. Here we describe the circumstances that led to the termination in Zurich, how Brussels was chosen for the succession, and how the transfer was accomplished.
ISSN:0038-0938
1573-093X
DOI:10.1007/s11207-015-0837-2