The Sun can have a remarkable range of activity over short times. This pair of images shows the Mees White Light Telescope (MWLT) images for the days 5 May 2000 and 19 May 2000. The 2 week separation is just half of the rotation period of the Sun, so these represent the opposite hemispheres of the Sun. On 5 May the sunspot activity was as low as at solar minimum, back in 1996 and 1997. By 19 May, the sunspot activity reached the largest value yet seen in the current solar cycle. If you don't like the solar weather, just wait a while.
Prepared by B. LaBonte
Last modified: Fri May 19 16:06:12 HST 2000