Long-Term Solar Variability Studies with a Unique Solar Synoptic Archive

该项目是一个成功的NSF-RAPID奖的后续项目，该奖项将通过麦金托什地图对可追溯到1964年的太阳磁场特征地图进行存档，并纳入Kodaikonal太阳天文台1955-1964年的天气图，将提供一套涵盖5个太阳周期的综合地图。研究人员将通过NOAA的国家环境信息中心(NCEI)档案服务获得这些档案，以确保它们得到保存。美国国家海洋和大气局的空间天气预报中心生成了麦金托什地图，因此档案具有很高的相关性，而且还在不断增加。这一独特的档案为全球太阳场的演变提供了一致和长期的看法，是提高太阳活动周期预测能力的重要工具。这些地图通过IDL程序数字化，并从输入FITS文件中生成曲线图。迄今为止，已经处理了第23太阳周期(1996-2009年)的地图。1964-1996年的麦金托什地图将与(1955-1964年)的H-Alpha天气图一起数字化。这些照片是由Kodaikonal太阳天文台按照帕特·麦金托什在1964年开始绘制地图之前制定的程序制作的。这些地图包含许多太阳磁场特征的信息，包括极冠细丝、冕洞和空洞以及活动区。这些长期信息对于长期研究太阳气候的太阳周期和发电机研究人员来说是非常重要的。

This project is a follow on to a successful NSF-RAPID award that will carry on an archiving of solar magnetic features maps through McIntosh Maps dating back to 1964 and inclusion of synoptic charts from 1955-1964 from the Kodaikonal Solar Observatory, will provide a comprehensive set covering 5 solar cycles. This archive will be available to researchers via the NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) archiving service ensuring they will be preserved. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center generates McIntosh Maps, thus the archive is highly relevant and growing. This unique archive provide a consistent and long term view of the evolution of the global solar field and is an important tool for improving predictive capabilities of solar activity cycles. The maps are digitized through an IDL program with makes plots from input FITS files. To date, maps for solar cycle 23 (1996-2009) have been processed. The McIntosh maps from 1964-1996 will be digitized along with H-alpha synoptic charts from (1955-1964). These were produced by at the Kodaikonal Solar Observatory following procedures laid out by Pat McIntosh before he began his mapping efforts in 1964. These maps contain information on a multitude of solar magnetic features including polar crown filaments, coronal holes and cavities, as well as active regions. This long term information is very important for solar cycle and dynamo researchers who do long term studies of solar climate.