Sunspots come in pairs with opposite magnetic polarity. If we could bury a giant horseshoe magnet beneath the surface of the Sun, it would produce a magnetic field similar to that generated by a sunspot pair.
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Windows to the Universe original artwork by Randy Russell using an image from NASA's TRACE (Transition Region and Coronal Explorer) spacecraft.

Related links:

Sunspots

The Sun's Magnetic Field

Movie: Journey Beneath a Sunspot

Movie: Magnetic Field Lines Tangle as Sun Rotates

Magnetic Fields

The Sunspot Cycle

Solar Cycle

Activity: Graphing Sunspot Cycles

Activity: Plotting Locations of Active Regions on the Sun

Activity: Tracking the Motion of an Active Sunspot Region

Sunspot Jigsaw Puzzle

Movie: Supercomputer Models Help Scientists Understand Sunspots

Sunspots and Magnetic Fields

You probably have magnets on your refrigerator holding up some of your artwork or a photograph of a friend or family. Did you know that it is magnetic fields (which all magnets have) that make sunspots on the Sun?

The magnetic fields are like "ropes" that break through the "surface" (photosphere) of the Sun. Where the rope comes up from the solar surface is one sunspot and where the rope goes into the photosphere is another sunspot.

When the magnetic ropes get too twisted, they can pop! This lets off huge bursts of energy in solar flares and Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs).

Last modified January 19, 2010 by Randy Russell.

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