Skip to content

Sunspot at Sunset

A sunset captured in Switzerland featured a sunspot so large it was visible to the naked eye.
Sign up for Big Think on Substack
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

“There’s never one sunrise the same or one sunset the same,” mused Carlos Santana. Indeed, sunrises and sunsets are the most watched celestial events, because they offer us something different every day. 

In the image above, a sunset captured in Switzerland featured a sunspot so large it was visible to the naked eye. Detailed views reveal a large solar active region composed of sunspots, some larger than planet Earth itself. Cataloged as active region AR 1944, on January 7 it produced a substantial solar flare and a coronal mass ejection (CME) forecast to reach Earth. 

Image Credit & Copyright: Jürg Alean

Sign up for Big Think on Substack
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.
Related
A bearded man wearing glasses and a plaid shirt speaks with a microphone clipped to his collar in front of a purple background with white dots.
The Well
How Rainn Wilson discovered sacredness
The hospital where Rainn Wilson’s wife and son nearly died became his own personal holy site. There, he discovered that the sacred can exist in places we least expect it. During his talk at A Night of Awe and Wonder, he explained how the awe we feel in moments of courage and love is moral beauty — and following it might be the start of our spiritual revolution.
▸
13 min
—
with
Rainn Wilson
Up Next