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Bug #19153

Solar flux increases unrealistically fast near sun

Added by Anonymous almost 6 years ago.

Status:
New
Severity:
Low
Assignee:
-
Category:
Physics
Target version:
-
Start date:
06/05/2018
% Done:

0%

Version:
Platform:
Windows
Expansion:
Core Game
Language:
English (US)
Mod Related:
No
Votes:
Arrow u r green
Arrow d r red

Description

We would expect the solar flux to increase as 1/(distance-to-center)² as we approach the sun, the usual 1/r² law for radiation of conserved quantities from a spherically-symmetric source. (This 1/r² law follows from the fact that the total energy exiting the surface of the sun is the same as the total energy flux through any larger sphere enclosing the sun.)

Experimentally, the dependence on distance is 1/(altitude-from-solar-surface)²
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/165795-bad-offset-for-stellar-energy-flux-thermalsolar-energy-flux-from-star-should-be-calculated-from-center-of-it/
This gives an infinite flux on the surface of the sun, and 11% too much flux at Moho.

People who know how to calculate the heat flux, and plan a trip to the atmosphere of the sun, are prevented by this bug
https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/index.php?/topic/122867-the-sun-kerbol-has-an-atmosphere/&do=findComment&comment=3392516

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