The sun has reached a milestone not seen for nearly 100 years: an entire month has passed without a single visible sunspot being noted. The event is significant as many climatologists now believe solar magnetic activity which determines the number of sunspots -- is an influencing factor for climate on earth. According to data from Mount Wilson Observatory, UCLA, more than an entire month has passed without a spot. The last time such an event occurred was June of 1913. Sunspot data has been collected since 1749.
The Sun, a burning ball of hydrogen and helium a million kilometres wide, is our source of energy and light, and a constant focus of scientific study. Thanks to the SOHO and Ulysses missions we have recorded solar activity through the 11 year cycle and observed its magnetic poles, yet there are many questions still unanswered, including the hot topic of the possible role of of the Sun in climate change on Earth.
The sun is behaving normally. So says NASA solar physicist David Hathaway.
"There have been some reports lately that Solar Minimum is lasting longer than it should. That's not true. The ongoing lull in sunspot number is well within historic norms for the solar cycle."
The sun has been laying low for the past couple of years, producing no sunspots and giving a break to satellites. That's good news for people who scramble when space weather interferes with their technology, but it became a point of discussion for the scientists who attended an international solar conference at Montana State University. Approximately 100 scientists from Europe, Asia, Latin America, Africa and North America gathered June 1-6 to talk about "Solar Variability, Earth's Climate and the Space Environment."
If you hadn’t noticed there are 2 huge sunspots visible on the face of the Sun. One is as large as the planet Jupiter in size and it seems to be growing.
They’re big enough to see with the naked eye, (but don't stare at the sun). A safer way to observe them would be to project the Sun through a pair of (old) binoculars onto a piece of card. Or you could possibly use a pinhole projector Link: