The Sun

Solar physics is a research field to which Japan makes significant ongoing contributions, including its satellite programs (particularly Yohkoh and Hinode), studies using numerical simulations, and long-term, world-standard studies of solar variations. The authors of this book are all world experts in a wide range of topics in the field. This textbook is designed to provide an undergraduate-level basic knowledge on the Sun and its connection to our daily life on the one hand (space weather) and to general stellar phenomena on the other. The contents have been carefully selected and arranged so that the reader can obtain a well-balanced understanding of the Sun, our closest star. Anticipated readers are undergraduate and graduate students, those working on science communication and public outreach, amateur astronomers, and of course members of the general public who are interested in astronomy. The English translation of this book, originally in Japanese, was facilitated by artificial intelligence. The content was later revised by the authors for accuracy.