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A group of sunspots has emerged on the side facing the Earth the sun, just in time for Thanksgiving.
Researchers identified sunspots before they were even visible from Earth, using a technique called heliosismology, which uses acoustic waves beneath the sun’s surface to probe features.
“We measured a change in the acoustic signals on the opposite side of the sun,” said Alexei Pevtsov, associate director of the National Solar Observatory (NSO) program that generates solar forecasts. he said in a statement. “We can use this technique to identify what is happening on the side of the sun that looks away from Earth, days before we can glimpse from here.”
Photos: Sunspots on Earth’s nearest star
Scientists have predicted that sunspots, the largest of which appear to be several times the size of Earth, will rotate ahead of Thanksgiving, which falls on November 26 this year. And this actually happened.
You may be able to see sunspots with proper filters on binoculars or a small telescope, but watch out: You must have ISO certified filters on equipment at all times to observe the sun safely. Never look directly at the sun without such protective equipment, especially when using astronomical equipment; this can cause permanent eye damage, including blindness.
Researchers use sunspots to make predictions space meteorology, the activity that the sun generates near the Earth. Eruptions of charged particles they can disrupt satellite communications and power lines, making it essential to know when sunspots – hubs of magnetic activity that serve as stepping stones for such explosions – will roam and face our planet.
“Having a wait time of up to five days on the presence of active sunspots is extremely valuable to our high-tech society,” added Pevtsov.
The sun is in the first months of its 11-year sunspot cycle and in a relatively quiet period. The sunspot group produced the strongest signal ever observed in this cycle, added Kiran Jain, the scientist who is leading the NSO-opposite prediction, in the same statement.
NSO has six monitoring stations around the world that monitor the sun through the Global Oscillation Network Group (GONG), funded by the US National Science Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
NSO officials added that the group expects to have to upgrade GONG in the coming years, as the network is nearly three decades old and requires more modern equipment.
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