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What a sunspot is?

Updated: 12/21/2022
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Wiki User

8y ago

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A sunspot is an area on the Sun's surface (the photosphere) that is affected by intense magnetic activity, which inhibits convection, thus reducing the surface temperature in that region. Even though sunspots are still very bright and hot they appear darker because they are cooler than the surrounding area. The normal temperature of the photosphere is about 5,800 kelvin, whereas the temperature of a sunspot is roughly 4,000 - 4,500 kelvin, which leaves them clearly visible (through filters) as dark spots. The average sunspot is about the size of the Earth! However, sunspots come in a variety of sizes ranging from hundreds to tens of thousands of miles across (many times larger than Earth). Scientists measure the total size (area) of all of the sunspots seen on the sun every day to get a measure of how active the sun is. Sunspots are not permanent. They appear and disappear on the surface of the sun in regular cycles that average about 11 years.

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Geoffrey Huels

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2y ago
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Related questions

What is the largest sunspot?

Prominence Sunspot in 1945


What are sunspot maximums and sunspot minimums?

Sunspot maximum and sunspot minimum are the points in time (roughly 6 years apart) when the sun is producing the most, or the least sunspots. In the past this has been measured both by sunspot area and sunspot count and is directly tied to the solar magnetic cycle.


What is an example of a sunspot?

This question makes no sense. It's like asking "what is an example of a pencil?" A pencil is a pencil, and a sunspot is a sunspot.


How many years is the sunspot cycle?

The sunspot cycle is about 11 years in length.


How big is a large sunspot?

A Large Sunspot can be up to about 10,000 miles across.


Do meteors cause sunspot?

No they do not. S sunspot is basically a magnetic storm on the the Sun's Photosphere.


What is a cooler area on the sun's surface?

An area on the sun that is cooler is called a sunspot.


What is the significance of sunspot regions the sun?

A sunspot is a part of the Sun that is cooler, and therefore darker, than the surroundings.


Can you direct me to a picture of a sunspot?

No


Are you in the high middle or low part of the sunspot cycle?

The Sun is rising close to its high, or peak sunspot cycle.


What was the sunspot classification on July 14 2007?

On July 14, 2007, the Sunspot number was 38. This was late in Solar Cycle 23. You can see the daily sunspot number and interesting astronomical phenomena at spaceweather.com.


How do you use the word sunspot in a sentence?

You should never look directly at the Sun to try to see a sunspot, as they are not as dark as they look in photographs. The magnetic disturbance that causes a sunspot will seldom occur in the same location twice.