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The Solar cycle, also known as the solar magnetic activity cycle, sunspot cycle, or Schwabe cycle, is a periodic 11-year change in the Sun's activity measured in terms of variations in the number of observed sunspots on the Sun's surface.
Solar cycles are nearly periodic 11-year changes in the Sun's activity that are based on the number of sunspots present on the Sun's surface. The first solar cycle conventionally is said to have started in 1755.
The sun emits the largest solar flare of this 11-year cycle, as imaged by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory on October 3. ... Our once-quiet star has been roiling with plasma arcs and sunspots and ...
Solar maximum is the regular period of greatest solar activity during the Sun's 11-year solar cycle. During solar maximum, large numbers of sunspots appear, and the solar irradiance output grows by about 0.07%. [2] On average, the solar cycle takes about 11 years to go from one solar maximum to the next, with duration observed varying from 9 to ...
The sun will reach solar maximum, or a peak in activity across its 11-year cycle, about a year sooner than originally predicted. Auroras, solar flares and space weather are all expected to increase.
The 11-year activity cycle of the Sun is tied to the number of sunspots, which in turn are linked to the intensity of space weather, including solar flare activity from the star.
Their number varies according to the approximately 11-year solar cycle. Individual sunspots or groups of sunspots may last anywhere from a few days to a few months, but eventually decay. Sunspots expand and contract as they move across the surface of the Sun, with diameters ranging from 16 km (10 mi) [3] to 160,000 km (100,000 mi). [4]
Scientists from NOAA, NASA and the international Solar Cycle Prediction Panel announced in October that the sun has reached solar maximum, or the peak of activity within its 11-year cycle. At the ...