Many people view the sun as a stationary, fiery object. But, in some sense, the sun actually contains some of the shifts and phenomena that a planet might. This article examines the phenomena of sunspots, and their dark presence on the plasma of the sun.
Sunspots are dark spots that migrate across the surface of the sun.
They can be as large as 60,000 miles across, and are caused when magnetic fields under the surface of the sun are twisted and poke through the sun's photosphere. These spots are different from solar flares and solar ejaculations, both of which form arcs over the surface of the sun. It is believed that some ancient people were able to see and recognize sunspots. They were glimpsed in 28 BCE by Chinese astronomers watching the heavens. Detailed maps of the sun exist from Meso-American cultures.