Editorial to the special issue Synergies Between Solar and Stellar Modelling

Abstract

The theory of stellar evolution allows us to interpret the observed properties of the Sun and of the other stars in the Milky Way, as well as in other galaxies resolved in stars. However, several open problems in our understanding of stellar structures, and of their role in the galactic formation and evolution mechanisms, are due to limitations of the theoretical evolutionary framework, that does not account for internal dynamics. The possibility to explore the inner structure of stars through the investigation of the seismic waves observed at their surfaces, has become one of the most challenging opportunity of modern astrophysics and a crucial benchmark for theoreticians. Since the discovery of solar oscillations, extensive ground-based networks have been devoted to the observation of this phenomenon, and thanks also to the results from the SOHO satellite and to the development of powerful theoretical seismological tools, Helioseismology has revealed the internal structure of the Sun, thus transforming our star into a true cosmic physics laboratory. The extension of this approach to other stars through the advent of the astroseismological space missions (e.g. MOST, COROT, KEPLER), the organization of modern devoted ground-based projects and the application of theoretical tools typically developed for the Sun to stars with dif-