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SOLAR MISSIONS
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STEREO - The Sun in 3D
Current Missions, Missions,
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
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COSMICOPIA
Exploration of the Universe Division (EUD),
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC),
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
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Current Space Weather Conditions
Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC),
National Centers for Environmental
Prediction (NCEP),
National Weather Service (NWS),
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA),
U.S. Department of Commerce
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Did You Say the Sun Has Spots?
The Sun, Space Today Online
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EXTENSIVE DESTRUCTION POWERS
SOLAR EXPLOSIONS
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC),
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
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LIVING WITH A STAR (LWS)
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC),
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
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Living With a Star: The Sun-Earth Connection
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC),
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
(Adobe PDF files)
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SOLAR CYCLE 24.COM
Solar Cycle 24.com, Kevin VE3EN
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Solar Physics
Science Directorate, Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC),
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
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Solar Terrestrial Activity Report
Jan Alvestad, DX-Listeners’ Club
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spaceweather.com
SpaceWeather.com, Dr. Tony Phillips
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Space Weather
Space Weather, Dr. Sten Odenwald
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SPACE WEATHER PREDICTION:
Research and Development
Naval Research Laboratory (NRL),
Department of the Navy (USN)
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What are solar flares?
ESA Space Science, European Space Agency (ESA)
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Mystery of the Solar Tsunami — Solved (w/ Video)
PhysOrg.com
(Source: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory)
[ 19 November 2009 ]
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Photo: The Sun Gets Its Spots (Back)
Alexis Madrigal, Wired Science,
Wired.com, Condé Nast Digital
[ 24 September 2009 ]
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Solar Sleuths Tackle Meaning Of “Quiet Sun”
Richard Cochrane,
Hypocrisy Reigns Here
[ 19 June 2009 ]
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Solar Cycle 24 Begins
Science@NASA,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
[ 10 January 2008 ]
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Solar Minimum Explodes
Science@NASA,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
[ 15 September 2005 ]
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Solar Myth
Science@NASA,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
[ 5 May 2005 ]
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SUN SHEDS SKIN AND FLIPS
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC),
National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA)
[ 19 November 2003 ]
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Solar flares: is iron-rich sun the cause?
UMR Public Relations, University of Missouri-Rolla (UNR)
courtesy of SpaceRef Interactive, Inc.
[ 30 October 2003 (original date) ]
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Our Sun has begun a new active phase. Completion of solar minimum on
January 4, 2008, was signaled by the appearance of a reverse-polarity
sunspot, initiating
Solar Cycle 24. It is a well-documented fact that
solar activity is not constant, but varies in a predictable
11-year average cycle. Solar astronomy and solar physics, two
branches of science which observe and study the Sun and attempt to
explain and predict its behavior, can claim ownership of the
largest array of Earth- and space-based instruments ever assembled to
observe the solar sphere. This instrumentation has provided us
with unprecedented images and measurements of solar activity
associated with the most recent solar maximum (of Cycle 23) — as
measured by sunspot activity — that occurred in April 2000.
While sunspot activity prior to the minimum had been waning for several years,
geomagnetic activity on Earth peaked in October
2003 (as measured by the planetary A-index, or PAI). This
geomagnetic maximum is generally characterized by increasing
magnitude and frequency of solar coronal mass ejections. Even at
solar minimum, the Sun continues to be a powerful and unpredictable
giant, occasionally surprising astronomers and other sun watchers with
sudden, violent bursts of activity.
Our Sun is never quiet.
Most of us do not care about Sol and its moods — but we should.
Collision of a coronal mass ejection (CME) with Earth’s
magnetosphere can induce a geomagnetic storm — a widespread
disturbance of the our planet’s magnetic field. While solar flares
can disrupt radio reception because they disturb the ionosphere, large
coronal mass ejections, by virtue of their ability to cause severe
geomagnetic fluctuations, can damage electric power grid equipment and
are known to have caused major electric power grid failures.
Furthermore, both flares and coronal mass ejections can damage satellites
and place the lives of astronauts and cosmonauts at extreme risk.
The Sun, when looked upon not as the bright, featureless disk presented to
the naked eye* (See warning below.), but as a massive, churning
dynamo at once both driven and constrained by phenomenal interplay of
battling nuclear, gravitational and electromagnetic forces, becomes an
object of intense fascination. It is no wonder that thousands of people
travel worldwide just to view a scant few minutes of a total solar eclipse.
With the resources available here, you can view and learn about our Sun
through the eyes and instruments of the men and women engaged in the
exciting fields of solar astronomy and solar physics.
Authored by Kenneth L. Anderson.
Original article published 16 December 2003, updated 28 March
2009.
Follow links to the right to learn more about solar astronomy and solar
physics, solar events such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections
(CME) that can affect the Earth and its magnetosphere, and measurement,
causes, effects and prediction of these events. Related Links at the
left margin display additional topics of interest pertaining to
astrophysics, space and spaceflight. View the
Space &
Spaceflight SiteMap for a complete list of all our
space, spaceflight, astronomy and astrophysics topics and the
Technology
& Science SiteMap for our collection of technology and
science-related topics.
High tech job seekers will find valuable resources under
Tech,
Science & Engineering Jobs and related
Job Finders & Job
Search Engines such as
Physics
Jobs.
* NEVER LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN without
proper eye protection used in the prescribed manner. Looking directly into
the Sun can damage the retina of the eye. This damage, even with modern
surgical techniques, cannot be repaired. Permanent blindness can be the
result of prolonged exposure.
How to Safely View the Sun and
Warning — Looking at the Sun is dangerous!
are two references that can help you learn what are considered to be safe
and unsafe solar viewing techniques.
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