The public is keenly interested in the Sun and its doings. “Sunspots” is one of the most frequent search terms bringing visitors to the NCAR/UCAR website.

In a breakthrough that will help scientists unlock mysteries of the Sun and its impacts on Earth, an international team of scientists from NCAR and the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research has created the first-ever comprehensive computer model of sunspots.

An experimental modeling study by a team of scientists that includes NCAR’s Hanli Liu (High Altitude Observatory) points to the propagation of waves upward from the lower atmosphere as a driver for variability in the ionosphere. The research is an important step toward better understanding space weather.

In a breakthrough that will help scientists unlock mysteries of the Sun and its impacts on Earth, an international team of scientists led by NCAR has created the first-ever comprehensive computer model of sunspots.

Travis Metcalfe, NCAR's High Altitude Observatory • How common are planets like Earth around other stars like the Sun? Are we unique, rare, or typical in that regard? Metcalfe likes asking big questions.