Transition of the Sunspot Number from Zurich to Brussels in 1980: A Personal Perspective
Additional information
Authors
Type
Journal Article
Year
2016
Language
English
Abstract
The Swiss Federal Observatory, which had been founded in 1863 by RudolfWolf, 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.
Journal
Solar Physics
Volume
291
Start page number
2487
End page number
2492
Keywords
irsol-refereed-scientific-papers
