“The Sun is anything but a stable yellow ball in the sky” — That’s how the narration begins in the NASA video presentation about the STEREO mission. The video itself is well done, with informative commentary and the usual outstanding NASA animated graphics. I highly recommend that you follow the link above and watch the four-minute video.
NASA’s twin STEREO spacecraft completed a series of complex maneuvers Sunday to position the spacecraft in their mission orbits. The spacecraft will be in position to produce the first 3-D images of the sun by April.
As physicists learn more about the Sun and it’s less than subtle behavior, we can expect to be able to “connect the sunspots” and identify the extent to which the Sun influences Earth’s environment and climate.
This may be a once in a lifetime celestial event for Earthlings to witness. A sun-grazing comet, McNaught, is visible to the naked eye in broad daylight! If you have clear skies, you should step outside today and try to observe the comet.
NASA Scientists studying the relationship between the Sun’s magnetic activity and the peak number of sunspots, have discovered a six-year relationship between the two phenomena. If the trend continues as it has since 1868, we should experience a count of about 160 sunspots during the next solar cycle peak, due in 2011. 
On a very cold (for us) and clear December morning, the moon showing a thin crescent rises above the eastern horizon. 
This may be more evidence that the Sun is entering one of it’s most active 
