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['Civ note: Never heard of sunspots, annnnd, thinks that this big sunspot exposé is the reason Nikon discontinued the lens used.] this guy zooms in on the sun and found WHAT?! | 0:50 The Haunted Side | 404K subscribers | 353,237 views | May 19, 2026

The Sun runs on an 11-year cycle of rising and falling activity, tracked mainly by counting sunspots – the dark patches scattered across its surface. Solar Cycle 25, the current cycle, was forecast as mild, and the sunspot count agreed. But those counts read only the surface. A global network of six telescopes has listened to the Sun’s interior for nearly 40 years, and what it is now telling researchers is not what the surface suggested at all. Listening inside the Sun Scientists have a name for eavesdropping on those sound waves: helioseismology. The waves are trapped inside the Sun,...

OK - I got one yanked a while back - still not perfectly clear on what things will get something you post pulled, but I think the last one had something to do with a title not matching source title?

A monster sunspot is taking aim at Earth after firing off dozens of powerful flares Sunday and Monday (Feb. 1-2) — including the most intense solar eruption in years. Elevated geomagnetic activity — possibly resulting in vibrant northern lights at lower latitudes than usual — is possible Thursday (Feb. 5), according to an alert from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC). However, it's still too soon to know for certain. The sunspot, called region 4366, appeared suddenly several days ago and has rapidly grown to roughly half the size of the infamous Carrington Event sunspot,...

Sunspots, those mysterious dark patches on the Sun's surface, have been observed by astronomers for thousands of years. Yet, despite centuries of study, no one fully understood why these spots could remain stable for such extended periods. New research, however, has finally cracked the case, revealing that the secret lies in a delicate balance between the Sun's magnetic fields and the pressure of its plasma. Sunspots have been documented since at least 27 B.C., with Chinese astronomers recording the phenomenon long before Galileo peered at the Sun through his telescope. Some historical records even suggest that Greek philosopher Anaxagoras might...

“The government is preparing for warming, which is outrageous.” Low sunspot activity means “the cooling will continue at least until 2030.” Last week, the IPCC reported it was 95 percent certain that climate change was the result of human activity, specifically the burning of fossil fuels that emit “greenhouse gases,” says this article on WND. “That’s the result that they get when you premeditate your science,” said Dr. Tim Ball, former professor of climatology at the University of Winnipeg. “The temperature is going down and has for 17 years while carbon dioxide increases,” Ball said. The IPCC and other scientists...

NASA and NOAA have declared the Sun’s solar maximum, noting increased sunspot activity and heightened solar events that influence Earth’s space weather. This period is linked to significant geomagnetic storms and aurora displays, with potential disruptions to satellites and communication systems. Solar Maximum Announced by NASA and NOAA.. During a teleconference on Tuesday, officials from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the international Solar Cycle Prediction Panel declared that the Sun has entered its solar maximum period. This phase, characterized by heightened magnetic activity, could continue for the next year. The solar cycle is an approximately 11-year...

The number of black spots peppering the sun's surface in August was the highest for almost 23 years, new data shows. The latest sunspot count was more than twice as high as initial forecasts predicted and is another clear sign that the sun's explosive peak, or solar maximum, is likely well underway — and will be far more active than scientists initially thought. Sunspots are regions of the sun's surface where surges of electromagnetic radiation break through the star's magnetic field, creating relatively cool patches that appear black to us thanks to an optical illusion. Along with the size and...

Explanation: Right now, one of the largest sunspot groups in recent history is crossing the Sun. Active Region 3664 is not only big -- it's violent, throwing off clouds of particles into the Solar System. Some of these CMEs are already impacting the Earth, and others might follow. At the extreme, these solar storms could cause some Earth-orbiting satellites to malfunction, the Earth's atmosphere to slightly distort, and electrical power grids to surge. When impacting Earth's upper atmosphere, these particles can produce beautiful auroras, with some auroras already being reported unusually far south. Pictured here, AR3664 and its dark sunspots...

The Sun’s surface is currently on overdrive as the Earth enters a period of high cosmic activity, with a major new threat discovered in the form of an enormous sunspot visible from the surface of Mars. While sunspots are not usually a cause for concern, scientists warn that the gargantuan sunspot group AR3576, which measures over 124,274 miles, could trigger powerful solar flares and wreak havoc on the Earth. Sunspots, which appear as dark holes on the Sun’s surface, are known to be so disruptive they can trigger coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – large plasma and magnetic releases from the...

Huge 'sunspot archipelago' 15 times wider than Earth is spotted on the Sun - and scientists warn it could bombard our planet with solar flares capable of causing devastating blackouts Spots on sun described as 'archipelago' as they look like a collection of islands These planet-sized dark spots can release charged particles that hit the Earth By JONATHAN CHADWICK FOR MAILONLINE PUBLISHED: 07:46 EST, 22 November 2023 | UPDATED: 07:46 EST, 22 November 2023 e-mail 34 shares 22 View comments They look like small dots of pepper on a tasty egg yolk, or an 'archipelago' – a big group of...

Experts have warned that the dark region, which is cooler than the surrounding area, could release energetic explosions capable of knocking out our planet's power grids. The exact measurements of the sunspot are unknown, but NASA's Perseverance rover snapped images of the spot as it sits more than 152 million miles from the sun. The rover observed the sunspot on August 17 through August 20 while exploring the Jezero Crater on the Red Planet.

The spot is so big it's changing the way the sun vibrates, according to spaceweather.com. If the dark spot hurls a blob of plasma at Earth, it could disrupt our magnetic field, affecting GPS and communication satellites orbiting close to Earth as well as airplane navigation systems. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center issued a forecast for an unsettled geomagnetic field around Earth on Aug. 6 and 7, which could means auroras, though whether it becomes a full-blown solar storm is not yet clear. The telltale vibrational changes showed up in a helioseismic map near...

A massive sunspot has been spotted on our sun that looks directly at Earth The sunspot doubled in size over just a 24-hour period Experts say it could possibly send out medium-class flares in the near future. A dark sunspot that is facing directly toward Earth doubled in size in just a 24-hour period and could possibly send out medium-class flares in the near future. Tony Phillips, the author of SpaceWeather.com, wrote on Wednesday: ‘Yesterday, sunspot AR3038 was big. Today, it's enormous.’ And it is now said to measure three times the size of Earth.

A HUGE sunspot which doubled in size over a 24-hour period is now directly facing Earth, meaning a large solar flare could strike the planet. The sunspot, known as AR3038, doubled in size between Sunday and Monday night. Now, it has turned to face the Earth, sparking concerns that rapid solar winds could pelt towards the Blue Planet. And stunning footage from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory on Sunday shows how the huge sunspot has been evolving. Experts at Spaceweather.com explained: "Yesterday, sunspot AR3038 was big. "Today, it's enormous. The fast-growing sunspot has doubled in size in only 24 hours. "AR3038...

The sunspot that has been growing in size recently is known as AR3038. Footage from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory on Sunday shows how the sunspot has evolved over the past day or so, twisting and contorting. "Yesterday, sunspot AR3038 was big. Today, it's enormous," reads the SpaceWeather.com website. "The fast-growing sunspot has doubled in size in only 24 hours." The magnetic field associated with the sunspot means it could potentially send an M-class solar flare at Earth—the second-strongest type. However, it is not known whether this will be the case. As of Monday morning the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's...

A powerful solar storm is set to hit Earth on Thursday (March 31) with spectacular aurora displays accompanying it after the sun fired nearly 20 flares from a single sunspot in just two days. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned that two coronal mass ejections (CMEs), spat out from the overactive sunspot AR2975, on Monday (March 28), are heading toward our planet and might trigger a geomagnetic storm rated as G3 on NOAA's five-point scale.

Just days after the Sun blasted Earth with an M-Class solar flare which created an unexpected G1-Class Geomagnetic Storm, the sun erupted another M-class solar flare towards the Earth earlier today. Today’s flare blasted the Earth with X-rays and UV radiation, triggering a shortwave radio black out over portions of the globe. On Saturday, NOAA forecasters said there was a risk of additional solar flares through today and as predicted, it occured. While Saturday’s solar flare erupted from sunspot Active Region-2911; today’s flare came from Active Regions 2908. In a statement released by NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center today, they...

NASA satellites have observed a large sunspot forming on the surface of the Sun. The sunspot is twice as wide as Earth and it is facing away from us, for now. However, as Earth moves around the host star, the sunspot could fire a solar flare right at us. Astronomy site Space Weather said: “A new sunspot is emerging over the sun’s northeastern limb, and it’s a big one. “The sunspot’s primary core is twice as wide as Earth, and it is accompanied by two Moon-sized companion spots – dimensions which make it an easy target for amateur solar telescopes....

Yet another series of solar flares(opens in new tab) series shimmied out from the sun on Friday (Aug. 26) after a dazzling show of green-hued auroras(opens in new tab) crashed through the atmosphere just days ago. "Sunspot AR3089 is crackling with a series of intensifying M-class [moderate] solar flares," SpaceWeather.com(opens in new tab) said in a Friday update. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured an especially powerful flare at 7:16 a.m. EDT (1116 GMT) as populations in Europe and Africa experienced a brief radio blackout. A huge ejection of charged particles from the sun(opens in new tab), known as a coronal...