Sun enters the solar maximum phase for Solar Cycle 25
NASA and NOAA announced on October 15, 2024, that the Sun has officially entered its solar maximum phase, a period marked by heightened sunspot activity, expected to continue into 2025.
X1.4 solar flare erupts from Region 3697
A strong solar flare measuring X1.4 erupted from Region 3697 (ex 3664) at 08:48 UTC on June 1, 2024. The event started at 08:26 and ended at 08:58 UTC.
Revised NOAA forecast predicts stronger Solar Cycle 25, peak in 2024
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) has revised its forecast for Solar Cycle 25, predicting a quicker and more intense peak in solar activity between January and October 2024. The updated prediction challenges the previous expert panel’s forecast from 2019.
Sunspot numbers exceed predictions for 18 straight months
Sunspot numbers provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have exceeded the official forecast made by the Solar Cycle Prediction Panel for 18 straight months in April 2022. The monthly value at the end of March was more than twice the forecast and the highest in nearly 7 years.
Solar Cycle 25 outrunning the official forecast
New sunspot counts from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) confirm that Solar Cycle 25 sunspot numbers have now exceeded predictions for 15 straight months. Consequently, the geomagnetic activity is ramping up while cosmic rays reaching Earth are…
SC25 Prediction Panel announces the start of a new solar cycle, expects continued below-average strength
Solar minimum occurred in December 2019, marking the start of a new solar cycle, the Solar Cycle 25 Prediction Panel, an international group of experts co-sponsored by NASA and NOAA, announced on September 15, 2020. The solar minimum between Solar Cycle 24 and 25 -…
First M-class solar flare of Solar Cycle 25 – Impulsive M1.1 at 07:24 UTC on May 29
A moderately strong solar flare measuring M1.1 erupted at 07:24 UTC on May 29, 2020. This is the first M-class solar flare of the new solar cycle — Solar Cycle 25. The event started at 07:13, peaked at 07:24, and ended at 07:28 UTC. The eruption took place on the…
First multi-spot group of Solar Cycle 25 – Active Region 2753 numbered on December 24, 2019
After 40 days with no sunspots on the Earth-facing side of the Sun, a new sunspot emerged near the southeast limb of the Sun on December 23, 2019, and was numbered Active Region 2753 on December 24. The region has magnetic polarity -/+, opposite of +/- magnetic…
Solar Cycle 25 Prediction Panel forecast update
Solar Cycle 25 Prediction Panel, co-chaired by NOAA/NASA, released its latest forecast for Solar Cycle 25 (SC25) on December 9, 2019. The forecast consensus: a peak in July 2025 (+/- 8 months), with a smoothed sunspot number (SSN) of 115. The panel agreed that SC25…
Century-class Solar Minimum in progress
The Sun was blank more than 89% of the time from June 22 – September 22, with only 6 brief and tiny sunspots and not a single significant solar flare during this period of extreme quiet, Dr. Tony Phillips of the SpaceWeather reports. "This is a sign that Solar…
