Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network
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The Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network (BiSON) consists of a network of six remote solar observatories monitoring low-degree solar oscillation modes. It is operated by the High Resolution Optical Spectroscopy group of the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Birmingham, UK, in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University, UK. They are funded by the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC).
BiSON operates automated resonant scattering spectrometers in astronomical domes or mirror fed systems. The current sites are:
- Mount Wilson Observatory, California, USA
- Las Campanas Observatory, Region IV, Chile
- Observatorio del Teide, Izana, Tenerife
- South African Astronomical Observatory, Sutherland, South Africa
- Carnarvon Tracking Station, Carnarvon, Western Australia
- Paul Wild Observatory, Narrabri, New South Wales, Australia
The BiSON has been collecting data continuously on solar oscillations since 1976, making it the longest running helioseismology network with data covering three solar cycles.