The Sun Gets Its Spots (Back)

The Sun Gets Its Spots (Back)

www.wired.com

Two sunspots are visible on our star’s face for the first time in more than a year, possibly ending an unexpected lull in solar activity.

Solar flares rise and fall on an 11-year cycle, so scientists thought sunspot activity would pick up some time in 2008. It didn’t. And this year has been quiet, too. No sunspots have been visible on the sun for 80 percent of the days this year.

(visit the link for the full news article)



Related AboveTopSecret.com Discussion Threads:
Vanishing Sunspot Mystery Has Scientists Worried! The Beginning Of The Ice Age?

I have read alot about sunspot activity on ATS and thought that this might be of relief to some of you. Plus, the pictures are cool, ah, hot...

Posted last year...

According to Geophysicist Phil Chapman, pictures from SOHO show that there is no sunspot activity on the sun at present. He also noted that the world cooled quickly between January last year and January this year, by about 0.7C! He also cautioned that another mini Ice Age could come without warning.

www.wired.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

So maybe we won't be getting that mini-ice age after all?

Seems like one minute we're preparing for global warming, the next a mini ice age, and now who knows what with the sunspots coming back. It shouldn't be any big surprise though, they're only 1 year late in the 11 year cycle, right?

I'm not sure about Wired, but if you check out spaceweather.com there are 32 current spots, which is fairly low.

Even during past mini ice ages that correllated with deep solar minimums the sun still went through its regular cycle of maximums and minimums. The difference being that during the max there were far less spots then normal. During the minimums there simply weren't any spots.

So we're not out of the woods yet.

[edit on 25/9/09 by MikeboydUS]

Yeah its about time...problem is I think they are gonna get big enough to cause some X-Class flares....then we are gonna be in trouble. Funny how everything seems to be comming to head in 2012.

An update:

The spots are all gone...again.

spaceweather.com...

As of yesterday there were only 11. Today October 2, the Sun is once again blank.