Solar photosphere (w/ AR 3697, AR 3698, & 3702) - 02.06.24

[josefk]

I've had three goes at white light observing/sketching today.

First at the end of an all night observation session (between something like 05:30 and 07:00 this morning - seeing was fabulous, (crystal clear and rock steady) even at a lowly altitude of circa 11-degrees.

This is my favourite sketch of the daylight day and a lovely hour with the early morning sun. This is by far the best observation and the most careful capture to paper. I dried my dew soaked kit off as well while doing it so win win:

 

Next up was a rather rubbish right way up right way round observation with a spotting scope. This was 12:00 and seeing was horrible. Big lumpy heat bubbles passing through the FOV and very low contrast. I'm not posting the sketch. I quite like a lunar observation in an erect image orientation but i find solar a bit confusing the right way up for some reason. This obs emphasised for me that the quality of the view going forward is 90/10 about timing versus kit.

Late afternoon i had a third go. The lone sunspot 3702 on the eastern limb was showing the Wilson effect superbly. My sketch doesn't capture it properly but it appeared like a proper indented saucer in the solar surface:

I also tried a soft capture of AR 3698 - i'm very much on the learning curve at this game trying to find the right balance of detail without over egging the contrast (contrast was anyhow reduced this afternoon over this morning)t:

I also tried for AR 3700 but saw a kind of teddy bear "likeness" in the leading group - once i'd seen it i couldn't unsee it so my sketch ended up looking like a care bear and went in the bin. Likewise i had another go at AR 3697 - it was quite changed/developed even in the 8 or 9 hrs since this morning. Its a tricky group with a lot of the detail in highlights rather than darks and in trying to capture that it got away from me so that went in the bin as well!

Edited June 2 by josefk

[glafnazur]

Great sketches. I think your sketch of 3702 is great, when I first looked at it I immediately saw it as being indented.

[YogSothoth]

Great sketches with a nice lot of detail 

[SwiMatt]

Awesome details! Always a fan of yours

 

[mariosi]

Very nice !