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). The sunspot images were captured by the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) using filtered visible light. 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. 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.
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Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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