The sun

Northern lights could be visible over some northern and upper Midwest states on July 24. A geomagnetic storm watch has been issued by NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center.

Two loops of "dark" plasma exploded from the sun on July 21, sending a stream of plasma and magnetic field known as a coronal mass ejection barreling towards Earth.

Scientists have figured out a way to estimate the speed of a coronal mass ejection before it even leaves the sun, potentially providing a big boost to space weather forecasts.

Even though the sun's current solar cycle hasn't reached its peak yet, scientists have seen signs that the next 11-year solar cycle is already getting ready for its time to shine.

You don't have to wait for the next solar eclipse to learn more about them, not when you can just make your own!

Sunspot region AR 3738 fired off an X1.9 flare as it exited the sun's western limb on July 16, 2024 and caused radio blackouts over much of Africa, Europe, and parts of North and South America.

Watch a powerful X-class solar flare erupt from the sun's surface on July 13 and find out how it affected Earth.

The sun warms the Earth, making it habitable for people and animals. But that's not all it does, and it affects a much larger area of space.

The remarkable aurora in early May this year demonstrated the power that solar storms can emit as radiation, but occasionally the sun does something far more destructive.

We explore the latest solar maximum predictions and look into why it could be a couple of years before we can confidently state when solar maximum occurred.