THE NEXT SOLAR CYCLE IS COMING: The pace of new-cycle sunspots is definitely intensifying. 2020 is only two days old, and already there is a Solar Cycle 25 active region on the sun. Provisionally numbered AR2755, the sunspot is inset in this magnetic map from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
We know that AR755 belongs to the next solar cycle because of its magnetic polarity. According to Hale’s Law, sunspot polarities flip-flop from one solar cycle to the next. During old Solar Cycle 24, we grew accustomed to sunspots in the sun’s southern hemisphere having a -/+ pattern. AR2755 is the reverse: +/-, marking it as a member of new Solar Cycle 25.
This is the 3rd consecutive month that Solar Cycle 25 sunspots have appeared: Nov. 2019, Dec. 2019, and now Jan. 2020. The quickening pace of new cycle sunspots does not mean that Solar Minimum is finished. On the contrary, low sunspot counts will likely continue for many months (and maybe even years) to come. However, it is a good sign that Solar Cycle 25 is slowly coming to life. The doldrums won't last forever!
We know that AR755 belongs to the next solar cycle because of its magnetic polarity. According to Hale’s Law, sunspot polarities flip-flop from one solar cycle to the next. During old Solar Cycle 24, we grew accustomed to sunspots in the sun’s southern hemisphere having a -/+ pattern. AR2755 is the reverse: +/-, marking it as a member of new Solar Cycle 25.
This is the 3rd consecutive month that Solar Cycle 25 sunspots have appeared: Nov. 2019, Dec. 2019, and now Jan. 2020. The quickening pace of new cycle sunspots does not mean that Solar Minimum is finished. On the contrary, low sunspot counts will likely continue for many months (and maybe even years) to come. However, it is a good sign that Solar Cycle 25 is slowly coming to life. The doldrums won't last forever!
)
