Solar observing/imaging challenge?

[JB80]

I have been flicking through this months Sky and Telescope magazine which I don't normally get and there are a couple of good articles about structured observing sessions which again is something I don't normally ever do but I found it rather interesting. One of the articles was about the Astronomical League which I have heard of but never really looked into it and although based in the US are open to anybody and one of the things that they offer for members is a series of different challenges/workflow programmes for people to complete which ultimately is designed as a very good way to learn more and try different techniques on which ever objects are the subject of the programme. Things like going through the Messier list or Caldwell list, the Moon or comets etc... they have a lot to choose from and then once the programme has been completed and submitted you receive a certificate and a nice little hat/lapel pin.

They also have a couple of solar ones too which I find the little challenges involved to be not as easy as you may first imagine.

Anyway, to get to my point.... Would people be interested in participating in a similar themed thread on SGL where the first post will outline the list of things to complete and at peoples own pace they can post a completed task in the thread and once completed hopefully you would of seen and learnt a couple of new things maybe try your hand at a sketch and more importantly spend some quality time with good ol' Sol. There wouldn't be any fancy hat pin or certificate at the end but maybe a list of completed names can be updated in the thread.

We could have two different versions, one for white light observing and one for Ha and if you have both you can do both. Provisions can be made for both the observer and the imager so which ever format you prefer would be OK.

Would there be any interest and willing participants in such a thread or not?

I haven't really thought it out beyond this to be honest but I wouldn't want it to be too formal, just some fun challenges that people can try at home.

If anyone like the idea and has any thoughts or ideas for it then please post them here. If not then that is fine too, it's just a thought I had.

Jarrod.

[Steve Ward]

Sounds like a fun idea Jarrod , count me in ... 

[Joseki]

Sound like a good idea to me too, I'm sure I'll learn a lot so I'm in.  (white light and Ha when my Quark gets back from Daystar, observing only).

[Uplooker]

Yes, that soundslikea good idea. I must admit I have very little, read No, structure to my observing / imaging. So this sounds like it could be just the ticket. I would be Ha, visual and imaging.

I will have a read up on the Astronomical League in the meantime.

Ian

[JB80]

Excellent, at least there is some interest then.

I will still have to work out the nuts and bolts of it so any ideas will be appreciated.

I will have a read up on the Astronomical League in the meantime.

Ian

Probably a good idea, I didn't want to directly link to it but it's definitely the sort of thing I was thinking of so it'll give a good idea of what might go into it.

[JamesF]

Work and weather have conspired against my solar observing/imaging over the last few months, but this does sound like a nice idea.

James

[Pig]

Count me in, it sounds like a fantastic idea

[Moonshane]

rather perversely as I live in the UK, I have had more opportunity for solar observing than anything else recently. I'm in!

[ronin]

I found the RASC programs and the Astro League ones some years ago and started looking for similar in the UK but found that no corresponding set of programs exist. Which I found somewhat disappointing.

I would have thought that something like the BAA or even RAS would have had some such collection of observing activities to generate potential interest for youngsters within the various Astronomy clubs.

[David Smith]

Count me in Jarrod. Sounds like a great idea.

[JB80]

Thanks all for the response, it sounds like a goer then.

I'm a touch busy this week but over the weekend I will sit down with a bit of reading and will compile a couple of lists and see if I can't think of anything different and take it from there. If anybody wants anything specific included let me know. I don't really want to copy the exact format but it will be along those lines I guess.

Hopefully have something solid soon.

I found the RASC programs and the Astro League ones some years ago and started looking for similar in the UK but found that no corresponding set of programs exist. Which I found somewhat disappointing.

I would have thought that something like the BAA or even RAS would have had some such collection of observing activities to generate potential interest for youngsters within the various Astronomy clubs.

Yeah I went looking for something closer when I came across them and couldn't immediately find anything. It's certainly something that somebody could jump on and if it was made EU wide as well I think it'd be a popular programme.

Like you say it is perfect for clubs and youngsters, everybody really.

[David Smith]

I'm away next week with no solar kit   so no hurry.

[Montana]

Excellent idea

I had a go at a prominence spotting to see if I could image all the classifications a while back but that is the only challenge I have done.

Alexandra

[Luke]

Sounds fun, Jarrod

[Luke]

One suggestion, how about an imaging challenge say once a month or every two months, with a theme like, a starfield behind the Sun, a pink Sun, a green Sun (!), a prom shot with no disc detail, ... It might get us to play around with our processing and to try new things. It would be great to see folks posting an image all in the same thread, I thought it was great fun and a bit of a community feeling when Robin did his outreach and we tried to post something

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Nice idea, but I do feel there is a difference between solar and even Lunar. There's the Lunar 100 list, and an additional 100 more, and these are clearly fixed objects to view. This means the lists are fairly long. By contrast, the sun's features are ephemeral, and so we can only observe classes of features. These classes are fewer in number than the lunar features or deep sky object (far fewer, I suspect). So what should we put on to make the list meaningful and interesting? Following the lunar 100 theme, the start should be easy, and the list should get progressively harder.

1. The Sun
2. Partial eclipse
3. Naked -eye sunspots
4. Sunspots
5. Umbra/penumbra distinction
6. Sunspot groups/Active regions
7. Surface granulation
8. Faculae
9. Solar rotation
10. Total eclipse
11. Corona
12. Prominences visible at total eclipse
13. Solar cycle: one maximum, and two minima or one minimum and two maxima
14. H-alpha disk
15. Prominences in H-alpha
16. Plage in H-alpha
17. Filaments in H-alpha
18. Spicules in H-alpha
19. Flares in H-alpha
20. .......... more here on different types of features
21. Disk in CaK
22. ................

Please add more suggestions. We might make a sort of triple badge system: White light, H-alpha, and CaK.

[JB80]

Thanks guys for the input and ideas!

Firstly I have to apologise, I haven't forgotten about this thread but I have been really busy the last couple of weeks and add on to that the stress of trying to find and buy a house in Spain and I have been a touch overwhelmed lately.

I like Luke's idea, that is something I wasn't thinking of but maybe it can be incorporated somehow.

Michael, that is along the lines of what I was planning, I do have a list with a few more things to add to it as well. I'll post a few more ideas shortly. CaK is not something I had thought of but it is at least an excuse to get a new filter.

With the proms I think you can look out for specific different ones, like "view a looping prom" or  "detached prom" even something like a filament lift off possibly?

Possibly something like an ISS transit too.

Things like a total eclipse or planetary transit would be good to add but I think that may just be extra credit for anybody lucky enough to see one. Especially considering all we have left on the planetary transit front is Mercury and even that is few and far between.