The sun is waking up.

Here's another image of the sun's surface. A sunspot has definitely formed; we just might be moving out of solar minimum.

What you're looking at is an image from the EIT (Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Telescope) aboard the SOHO science satellite. This picture is created by detecting 195 Angstrom wavelength light, which corresponds to temperatures of 1.5 million degrees Kelvin. The important feature is the bright area on the right side of the sun. This is a sunspot, or an area of intense magnetic activity. This is a region where solar flares can develop, which makes my job far more fun.

Be sure to check out the latest images from the SOHO satellite.