So what good is this? Well, not much really. It is kind of fun to see historical graphs...and I like graphs!If you try to prove relationships between solar cycles and the stock market, birth rates, or anything else, be sure to include your confidence levels and all the other fun statistics...I will be checking your work!
Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog.
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24 comments:
Wow, I was born when it was at the absolute bottom of the chart. I wonder what that means?
AA me too. It was high all around me but at a low when I was born.Top of the chart was 200 middle was 100 so that means I was at around 10? Hale....what does it mean? Was the sun calm when AA and I where born? Does this mean we should be calm?
Well, I was born at about 130! Is that good??? What does this all mean?
Hale, you need to tutor us in the importance of our scores!
Yea, please, Mr. Hale, what do these charts portend?
Oh yea, baby! I my birthday falls at 199! I don't care what anyone says, I'm interpreting it to mean good things. :)
Hale, no surprise or coincidence that you were at maximum... we know you're the top of the heap!
Abby, I think it means that the Sun was bowing to the majestic moment of our birth.
Mine is around 130. Scale runs from 0 to 200, so does that mean I'm a little over half baked?
Mine is in the same area. You and I were born the same year, but you in May (right) and me in September....wonder why out Sunspot numbers would be about the same? It would explain why Abbey called me a 'hottie.'
AA I think you're right........and peace fell upon the sun as 2 new stars where born!!!!!!!!
Abby,AA I think they were either on vacation on the far side or they were hiding in their closet afraid of who was showing up. It was around 50 on my bday on it's way to 0.
sun spots are better than age spots, right?? :)
btw, my number is 20.....
Figures! My sunspot number is like my IQ.....near zero.
Mine was at the peak at almost 200.. Interesting..
The good news is that sunspot numbers do not mean a thing for personality, fortune or anything else...and kk, although you can't tell since the scale got cut off my image for some reason, your number was much higher than mine (Why Not's also).
The sunspot number is k(10g+s) where g is the number of groups of sunspots, s is the number of individual sunspots and k is a scaling factor related to the type of telescope you are using and observing conditions. Lower numbers mean the Sun is not as active, fewer flares and solar storms, higher numbers mean more flares and solar storms.
We are coming out of a deeper than average minimum right now and I am pretty sure I will blog some solar events as the Sun becomes more active the next few years.
So then kk would be a scaling scaling factor?
Hale does anything show the sun possibly having a hugh spot flare and burning up the earth on 12-21-12? That's a theroy out there isn't it?
In reading Hale's comment, I am beginning to think, well higher flares and more solar storms.....oh dear, hot and bothered, I guess.
And, oh, Hale, is there going to be a test on this????
A test! I hope not! I'd probably flunk.
Mine was around 50.
Hale is a tough task-master, Drew. I am buying a telescope...and I think I need a book on astronomical phenomonea...is that a word???
Funny you should mention 2012 Abby. My friend the Bad Astronomer blogged about this as well and mentioned the 2012 nonsense in his post (which should tell you my opinion of it!)You can read the Bad Astronomer's post here
Although there is a lot of activity near solar maximum, the most intense storms are usually a couple of years later. If the Mayans were so smart, they would have predicted something around 2014 or 2015 based on solar cycles for a big solar storm.
The whole 2012 thing is like a game of whack-a-mole. First you have to smack down the solar flare people..then the people who think we are going to pass through magic spot in the galactic plane that will doom us...then the earthquake nuts...then the whackos who think we are going to get a massive global snowstorm..then...well, you get the idea.
As you can see, part of the problem is that there is no unified 2012 doomsday scenario, just a bunch of people trying to make up random scary stories (and I am sure I have missed a bunch of them!)
Thanks Hale. My daughter had a few questions about this that I just can't answer. Her and I can go to some of the sites and maybe I can ease her mind. You know let her see nothing is in stone on this and it's all hear say. The only opstical I see on this issue is the bible mentions it too.
Beejay,Iwouldn't mind taking my telescope out of storage Up North and bring it back to Racine.Storage would be a problem.
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