25 in 2025
According to the solar cycle forecast from Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), the next solar maximum is expected in 2025. That means the highest solar activity is coming this year.
Solar Cycle 25 is predicted to be fairly weak. Scientists count sunspots to determine the strength of solar activity. Cycle 24 had the least sunspots for the past century, and 25 isn’t expected to be much more active. Still, it will be an interesting year.
Solar cycle peaks are exciting times for astronomers due to the increased activity on the sun’s face. Sunspots can vary in lifespan, intensity, shape, and size, making for more interesting views.
It is a coincidence that the twenty-fifth solar cycle reliably recorded by the scientific community would peak during the year 2025. Twenty five times now our studiers of the sun have counted cyclic increases and decreases in solar activity.
The National Weather Service lists the average length of a solar cycle at eleven years, which was the case with cycle 24 which peaked in 2014 and ended in 2019. While we don’t know for certain when cycle 25 will end, it will most likely be over a decade before the next solar maximum. So get your viewing in while you can!
Not with your naked eyes, of course. Looking directly into the sun can damage your eyes.
Visit the solar experts for routinely updated views and information on this years solar activity!
Today we look to organizations such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) for observing solar activity.
