Astronomers are still learning aboutsunspotsand about their affect on us, but believe that the spots on the sun, which were first observed through a telescope by Galileo in 1610, are electrical in nature. They base this belief upon the known effects that sunspots produce, and upon one astronomer'suncontestedshowing that sunspots arewhirlwindsof electrified matter that burst out in pairs from the sun's interior.

Sunspots vary in size from what appear to be smallspeckson the sun's surface, to at least 90,000 miles long, and 200,000 miles in length, and are visible on most clear days.

When sunspots release their electrical energy, they shoot beams of negatively chargedelectronsinto space, some of which escape into the earth's atmosphere. These electrons create electrical effects, such as theaurora borealis, orNorthern Lights, cause the disruption of radio transmissions, and increase the amount ofozonein the upper atmosphere. The additional ozone may absorb more than the usual amount of the sun's heat, which in turn may effect our weather.

The sunspot cycle, is a recurring 11-year period over which the number of sunspots fluctuates and corresponds to the number ofsun flares. An increase in the number of sun flares leads to an increase in the number of sunspots, and a decrease in the number of sun flares leads to a decrease in the number of sunspots.

Records of sunspots have only been kept for the last 100 years or so, leaving astronomers with little to back their research and much yet to discover about this phenomenon.

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