An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

The mechanism arising from turbulent convection in the → convective zone of stars, which is responsible for the driving of stellar → pulsation modes.
In stars cooler than typically ~ 7 500 K (→ F-type stars and cooler), the stochastic excitation occurs in the convection envelope. In massive stars, it may develop either in the → convective core or in the convective layer beneath the → photosphere. Recent studies suggest that in → Be stars stochastic excitation takes place in the convective core. The stochastic waves can transport → angular momentum from the core to the surface. Fast rotation, as in Be stars, amplifies the stochastic excitation.

See also: → stochastic; → mode.