heliakustika

Heliakustika is a field within solar physics and acoustics that focuses on the study of acoustic oscillations in the Sun and, more broadly, in stars. The term derives from helios (sun) and akoustikos (acoustic) and is sometimes used as a generic or translated label for helioseismology and its stellar analogs. In practice, heliakustika encompasses the detection, characterization, and interpretation of oscillation modes generated by turbulent convection that propagate as sound waves through stellar interiors.

Observationally, heliakustika relies on measurements of surface velocity and brightness variations caused by sunlike oscillations. Data are gathered with space-based instruments such as the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) and the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), as well as ground-based networks like GONG. For other stars, techniques fall under asteroseismology. The main oscillation modes include pressure modes (p-modes), gravity modes (g-modes), and surface gravity modes (f-modes). Through inverse modeling of observed frequencies, researchers infer internal properties such as sound speed, density, rotation, and the depth of convection zones, constraining models of stellar structure and evolution.

Although heliakustika is not widely used as a standard English term, it overlaps with helioseismology in solar studies and with asteroseismology in stellar studies. It highlights the acoustic perspective of studying stellar interiors, complementing imaging and spectroscopic approaches.

See also: helioseismology; asteroseismology; solar oscillations; stellar seismology.