This may sound alarmist, but the Sun is the brightest object in the sky and can easily cause blindness if looked at directly. When you get interested in astronomy it is natural to want to explore astronomical objects. You may wish to look at the Sun, this can be very dangerous, even through sun glasses.

Some new telescopes provide solar filters that claim to allow you to observe the Sun. These filters are very dangerous and can crack under the extreme heat caused by solar observing. Never use these filters, if you have one, throw it away so it will not tempt you to try. Similarly, some manufacturers provide glasses and goggles in various configurations, don't use these either!

There is only one truly safe way to observe the Sun, that is by projection- a technique where an image of the sun is projected onto a screen. This is best left to someone with experience, as it can be hazardous as the lenses can heat up. Check out my Solar Eclipse images, for an example of projection. In the mean time there are plenty of sources of solar images. SoHO, the Solar Heliospheric Observatory is a satelite that observes the Sun continuously. If you visit its website sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov you will be able to download spectacular images of the Sun.