Faculae

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  faculae \fac"u*l[ae]\, n. pl. [L., pl. of facula a little
     torch.] (Astron.)
     Groups of small shining spots on the surface of the sun which
     are brighter than the other parts of the photosphere. They
     are generally seen in the neighborhood of the dark spots, and
     are supposed to be elevated portions of the photosphere.


     --Newcomb.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  faculae
       See {facula}

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  facula
       n 1: a bright spot on a planet
       2: a large bright spot on the sun's photosphere occurring most
          frequently in the vicinity of sunspots
       [also: {faculae} (pl)]