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A sunspot appears as a dark region on the surface (photosphere) of the sun. Temperatures in sunspots are cooler than the surrounding area of the photosphere, which is why spots are dark. Sunspots are magnetic regions, in which the strength of the magnetic field is thousands of times stronger than Earth's magnetic field.
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+ More NASA Facts...
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| Racing to Picture a Planet
A new instrument under development at Palomar Observatory aims to reveal new worlds by blocking out starlight.
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| Record Fifth Planet Found Orbiting Nearby Star
Astronomers have announced the discovery of a fifth planet circling 55 Cancri, a star beyond our solar system.
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| Putting Together the Big Picture in Planet-Finding
As the manager of the Michelson Science Center at Caltech, Dr. David Imel coordinates a team of scientists and engineers whose goal is to find the elusive Earthlike planet.
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| The 10 Most Intriguing Stars of 2007
PlanetQuest asked some leading planet hunters to name their most intriguing stars for 2007. Here are their top 10 choices.
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| Mission Could Seek Out Spock's Home Planet
Astronomers have concluded that a space observatory currenty in development would be able to detect an Earth-like planet around the star known to "Star Trek" fans as the location of Mr. Spock's home world, Vulcan.
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| NASA Tests Planet Finding Technology
For the first time ever, NASA researchers have successfully demonstrated in the laboratory that a space telescope rigged with special masks and mirrors could snap a photo of an Earth-like planet orbiting a nearby star.
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Keck Interferometer
Virtual Tour
Take a 360 degree virtual tour of the world's largest optical telescopes.
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Planet Hunters
How will future missions look for signs of other worlds like our own?
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