Sunquakes by J. B. Zirker, Johns Hopkins University Press, £22/$29.95, ISBN 080187419X
THE sun is ringing like a bell. Nobody knows exactly why, but no matter. The point is that the ringing “modes” of the sun reveal the structure of its hidden interior as surely as the signature tune of a real bell reveals its detailed shape and make-up.
Observing the subtle vibrations of the sun, however, has proved a Herculean task. It has been achieved only by spectacular feats of technological wizardry and decades of dedicated slogging. The whole riveting story of helioseismology is now told by J. B.…
