The Sleeping Sun - Astronomers and astrologers join in observing the Solar Cycle.

The Sun is presently at the bottom of its 11 year Sun-spot cycle. However, the recent low has been quite remarkable and the disk of our closest star has been virtually blank and spotless since the beginning of 2008. The Sun is Sleeping. However, on Aug. 4 we experienced the most powerful outburst of Solar Flare on the Sun's surface for 25 years and the Northern lights gave a spectacular show and could be seen at latitudes south of 60N all over the world.

Scientists believe that Solar activity influences human activity and coincides with phenomena that occurs on Earth. Astronomer Frank Hill of the National Solar Observatory did in the New Scientist go as far as to say:

"Think of the sun as a musical instrument," Hill explains. "A piano has 88 keys, but the sun has five million 'notes' or modes of oscillation."

Now that sounds familiar. Where could I have heard something like that before?
I'll go along with that!

Next year the Sun is due to burst into life again as it moves into a 5 1/2 year period with increasing activity. Scientists are already warning that explosions in the Sun's atmosphere has the potential of causing damage on Earth. Satelites, navigation equipment and other electronical devices have proven themselves particularly vulnerable to high outbursts of solar winds. Coincidently, as the Sun comes out of its dormant sleep in 2010 this occurs at the same time as Jupiter and Uranus will join in the early degrees of Aries. So there are quite a few things all happening at once.

Links to articles at the New Scientist:
The Sun Face is Virtually Spotfree
The Mystery of the Quiet Sun
Solar Storms due in 2011
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Update site on Solar Activity

hi andrew there is an interesting graph on Spaceweather.com at the moment showing that in terms of magnetic field strength sunspots have been dwindling since 1995 and may disappear totally soon. Maybe we are in for a long Maunder Minimum after all (which some have tied in with the last "Little Ice Age"???

Looking further forward to later in this current century the Jupiter/Saturn conjunctions move into water which other astrologers have linked in with the Little Ice Age and other climatic downturns? So sooner or later maybe things get a tad chilly.

mike c