F

Abstract

faculae. Bright patches in the upper part of the solar *photosphere that have a higher temperature than their surroundings and occur in areas where there is an enhancement of the relatively weak vertical magnetic field. With the exception of polar faculae, which consist of isolated granules and appear in high heliographic latitudes around the minimum of the *sunspot cycle, they are intimately related to * sunspots: they form shortly before the spots — in the same vicinity — and persist for several weeks after their disappearance. Faculae are best seen when near the sun’s limb, where *limb darkening renders them more readily visible. They are approximately coincident, albeit at a lower level, with the *plages visible in monochromatic light.