Richard C. Altrock

NSO/SP Scientific Staff


Areas of Interest

Studies of the long- and short-term variation of the solar corona


Altrock (USAF/PL) works on solar-cycle studies of the solar corona, using data from the SP Emission-Line Coronal Photometer (ELCP). This includes investigation of the variation of activity and rotation as a function of latitude and various periodicities in activity. Efforts to understand the implications of and to refine knowledge of overlapping solar cycles as observed in the corona will be continued. Studies of the variation of Fe XIV and Fe X coronal flux and their relationship to other global solar parameters will be performed. ELCP data will be searched for transients, and correlations with chromospheric, upper-corona (from space-based instruments), and possibly solar-wind and geomagnetic data will be investigated. Investigations of the spatial and temporal variations of coronal temperature will continue. Correlations will be performed on East-limb ELCP Ca XV intensities and flare intensities of associated active regions during their disk passage. Studies of the relationship of coronal hole properties to solar wind speed will be carried out.

Altrock tracks the effects of pollution on Sac Peak skies. He is a member of the NASA working group: The Thermosphere, Thermal Environment and Solar Conditions Working Group of the Space Environment and Effects Program. He is the manager of the Emission-Line Coronal Photometer (ELCP) synoptic program. He supervises Tim Henry, data assistant and programmer, for this project. He continues to manage the CORONALERTS worldwide alerting system for unusual activity in the solar corona. Daily data products continue to be faxed to the NOAA Space Environment Services Center and the Air Force 50th Weather Squadron. Altrock participates in AURA activities such as membership on the NSO/SP Telescope Allocation Committee and providing coronal data to the community on the NSO/SP anonymous FTP site and automatically by email. He supplies coronal data to NOAA for publication in Solar Geophysical Data.

See also my other home page.


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NOAO is operated by the Association of U niversities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), Inc. under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation
Posted: 12Dec1996