A Sunspot has been spotted on the Surface of the Sun, identified as Sunspot 3363 that is currently visible without the help of any telescopes.
A Sunspot is a region on the surface of the Sun, where the temperature is less than its surroundings. The surface of the Sun is as hot as 5000 degrees, while these regions are at 4500 degrees. This reduction in
500 K between the region and its surroundings, means, the surroundings of the Sunspot give out more light than the Sunspot and thus, it appears dark.
Sunspot 3363 has been observed in the past few days and has been growing in Size. This Increase in size has led to the Sunspot being visible to the naked eye, with the help of a Solar Filter, without any
telescopes or binoculars. Normally, Sunspots are only visible through the help of a Telescope equipped with a solar filter. The appearance of the Sunspot 3363 of such large size suggests that the Sunspot is
currently larger than the Earth Itself. Typically Sunspots can vary between 16km to 160000km in size. The Earth’s diameter is 12742km and therefore it is normal for a Sunspot to be larger than that of the
Earth.
However, the size and appearance of the Sunspots are not uniform. The appearance of Sunspots depends on what is known as the Solar Cycle. This is a period of 11 years where the activity on the Surface of the Sun, seems to increase and then decrease, before repeating again. The Current Solar Cycle i.e. Cycle 25 began in the Year 2019 and is expected to show maximum activity in 2025. So we will observe more such sunspots in future as well. However, there is no guarantee that it will always appear on the part of the Sun that’s facing the Earth. Scientists are still trying to figure out why the Solar cycle lasts 11 years and other mysteries associated with it. The only thing that we know is that the Sunspot is a consequence of the complex magnetic fields of the Sun and Sunspot 3363 will not erupt and cause any harm to Earth.
A Sunspot can be visible from anywhere between a few hours to a few days on the surface of the Sun. A stable and large sunspot can be seen for several days as it moves across the Solar Disk as the Sun rotates
while some sunspots can disappear within a few hours. The Sunspot 3363 has been visible since 6 th July 2023 and might be visible until the end of the this week, before It moves away from our view and not
appear again.
It is important that we observe such a wonderous act of nature, where we notice a dot on the Sun’s surface that is bigger than the Earth, giving us a clearer picture as to how big the Sun really is. However
care must be taken to use proper filters to observe the Sun. DO NOT stare directly at the Sun, do not use X-ray sheets or goggles that are meant for day to day activities. The Sun must always be observed with a
certified Solar filter only. Using anything other than a filter can cause damage to vision and hence care must be taken.
This Sunspot has been tracked by the Poornaprajna Amateur Astronomers’ Club in its growing stage and interested viewers may do so too, on the Club’s Website, which presents the view of the Sun as seen by NASA, Live. In this season of the Moonsoon, Poornaprajna Amateur Astronomers’ Club, wishes that everyone get windows of Sunny view between the clouds so as to spot and observe such a large sunspot
clearly.
By 
ForthFocus™