NEWS: In The Eve Of Solar Minimum The Sun Explodes.

Since 2000 the number of sunspots has decreased, as was expected, but somehow solar activity persists. The few sunspots that have exploded, have packed an incredible punch, making 2005 the most active month of the sun since 1991. On Sept. 7th a huge sunspot appeared and exploded, producing one of the brightest solar flare of the space age without much warning.



According to solar physicist David Hathaway, of the National Space Science and Technology Center in Huntsville, Alabama, we don't know if this is normal or not, since we have only been able to observe the sun using satellite technology since 1975, and we have only studied 3 cycles. But that is still a lot of activity, and I have to wonder, with Mr Hathaway, what the sun will do in 2006, when the solar minimum is supposed to arrive.

Related News Links:
science.nasa.gov
science.nasa.gov

[edit on 18-9-2005 by Muaddib]

Listed below is a link to a discussion board that I know many from here visit and vice versa. It is a prophecies and predictions site and I'm posting this because they have an Earth Changes category in which they have a topic discussing the sun's recent activity. There are a number of articles and sources listed among the replies that I found very engrossing.

forum.prophecies.us...

I'm also attaching a link from the same site discussing an object picked up on LASCO images that some on the site believe is affecting the sun during what should be the approach of a minimal period of activity. Apparently, the NASA view on this is that it is Mercury, however, I found the debate on this site about whether or not this is true very intriquing.

forum.prophecies.us...

Another excellent site dedicated to the study of Solar activity is Space Weather. If you view the archives you can see all the data that has been collected on it to date.

Of the 14 X-Class flares that we've seen, 9 have been caused by Sunspot 798. It also gave off the largest (I believe) recorded CME, and X-17.

Anyway though, in a couple days it'll be out of site. Don't expect to see it again, either. It's disappearing just as swiftly as it appeared. Besides, it already made one complete circuit around the Sun, anything more would be unheard of!

I love the way scientists impose a pattern...they have observed 3 solar "cycles" and are saying this is now an aberation...it could also well be that those 3 cycles were the aberation and the sun is returning to its regular state of affairs...BUT considering the sun is a swirling, bubbling, churning thermo-nuclear soup, it could very well be that no state of affairs is it's regular state of affairs. Break out the marshmellows boys but don't forget your sunscreen (highest rating available thnk you) and your sunglasses, with the ozone hole growing things could get toasty.

Originally posted by grover
with the ozone hole growing things could get toasty.

why is it always so hard to get people to CONSIDER that the sun may be a huge factor in causing ozone depletion/global warming?
daved

the simple answer is that the biosphere (of which the ozone is an intergral part) tends to be self-maintaining AND the most thoughtful scientists and writers discussing global warming NEVER maintain that humans are the sole cause of global warming, but one of possibly many. However the media in its insistance to simplify everything down to a sound bite has...all that being said, while we cannot control what the sun does or cosmic dust clouds may do, we can and should do what we can to curb the effects of our own activities AND dispite all the obstructionist shrill about it, it certianly would do us no harm and would create thousands upon thousands of new jobs. No matter how affluent we are and how abundant our resources are, conservation is never a bad thing and despite Cheney's prouncement that it is only a private virtue, it should be a governmental and business one too.
Edited vulgarity, and took the opportunity for a spelling repair




[edit on 18-9-2005 by Thomas Crowne]

Edited vulgarity, and took the opportunity for a spelling repair

I really DO NOT like somebody taking it on themselves to edit what I have written and as for your spelling repair, you mispelt Cheney.

[edit on 18-9-2005 by Thomas Crowne]

You were quite right, I did let a sticky key mess me up.

Don't like edits? And, keep the filth off the board and you won't get edited.
Want filth? Start your own board. If you are going to play in this sand box, however, you'll play by the rules.
No throwing sand in other kids' eyes, either.

the magnetic problem and more solar flares may be the major earthquake that we had last year combined with the supernova that blanketed the earth 2 days later.it could be having an effect as the earth is spining alittle faster.the friction between the earth and sun could show changes in the sun solar bursts.just alittle change in our magnetic can have major effect on everything around us.we know very little about it but maybe we should...

First, Muaddib, the title of this story is insanely misleading. It's humorous, and even bordering on sensible after I've really read the story, but it's alarmist to the max.

"Sun Explodes" vs "Tons of activity" = Connotationary Nightmare.

Second, grover, we have not just been observing the sun for 3 cycles. We've been observing the sun for over a hundred years. If I were to go dig up one of the 20 or so books of Asimov's essays I could read the bit on sunspots/solar activity that he likely wrote in the 70's, talking about how we knew what we know.

Rudolph Wolf started doing systematic measurements in 1848, and we've been tracking solar activity seriously since then. We've realised that there are 11ish year periods that generally prevail, 11 going from peak to pit and 11 more back to peak.

Through the years, as astronomy has evolved, we've understood more and more, and since 1975 or so, we've had satellites that can do far more advanced calculations/measurements. We just have known a ton more since then.

Finally, this is a very interesting thing. Near Solar Min, we're experiencing amount of activity similar to the halfway point from Max to Min - I'm wondering if the number will roughly hold, then increase, or what? Time will tell, but a good read while we wait.

I'd suggest reading this to anyone interested in learning more.