Sunspots, Solar Cycle 23, EIT, 2000
Image from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft show sunspots on the Sun's surface and ultraviolet light radiating from the solar atmosphere at the last solar maximum (2000). On July 19, 2000, the solar atmosphere was pulsating with activity: in addition to several extremely bright (hot) spots around the mid-latitudes, there were also numerous prominences around the edge of the disk. Centuries of observations have shown that the number of sunspots waxes and wanes over a roughly 11-year period. Sunspots exhibit other predictable behavior. If you map the location of the spots on the Sun's surface over the course of a solar cycle, the pattern they make is shaped like a butterfly. The reason for the butterfly pattern is that the first sunspots of each new solar cycle occur mostly at the Sun's mid-latitudes, but as the solar cycle progresses, the area of maximum sunspot production shifts toward the (solar) equator. Since regular sunspot observations began, astronomers have documented 24 cycles of sunspot activity. The images acquired in July 2000 showed the Sun near the peak of Solar Cycle 23. Periods of intense magnetic activity on the Sun can spawn severe space weather that damages infrastructure in our high-tech society. Roughly a million miles away from our planet, the SOHO spacecraft sits between Earth and the Sun, giving us an unobstructed view of the nearest star. Caption by Michon Scott.
Size: 3600px × 3600px
Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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