(Redirected from Flare Star)A 'flare star' is a
variable star which can undergo unpredictable dramatic increases in brightness for a few minutes or a few hours. The brightness increase is across the spectrum, from
X rays to
radio waves.
Flare stars are dim
red dwarfs, although recent research indicates that
brown dwarfs might also be capable of flaring.
The first known flare stars (V1396 Cygni and AT Microscopii) were discovered in
1924. However, the best-known flare star (
UV Ceti) was discovered in
1948, and today flare stars are sometimes known as 'UV Ceti variables'.
The Sun's nearest stellar neighbor
Proxima Centauri is a flare star, as is another near neighbor
Wolf 359.
Barnard's Star, the second nearest star system, is also suspected of being a flare star. Because they are so intrinsically faint, all known flare stars are within about 60
light years of Earth.
It is believed that the flares on flare stars are analogous to
solar flares.
External links
★ http://www.aavso.org/vstar/vsots/fall03.shtml
★
Stellar Flares - D. Montes, UCM.