Solar Activity 18 Jan

[brianb]

First look at the Sun for 10 days, and not a good one at that - lots of cloud interfering & I got only a couple of short opportunites to observe.

AR1040 is rapidly approaching the limb but there is not much other activity on the disc visible in CaK

2010 Jan 18, 1134 UT. Coronado PST CaK @ f/10, DMK41

Unfortunately I was unable to get a high res image of the active area in CaK, but even the full disc image shows how a large spot right on the limb appears to have taken a bite out!

The spot was also visible in white light but I was unable to get a good image.

I did manage to image the active region in Ha a couple of hours later

2010 Nov 18, 1349 UT. Solarscope 60 @ f/16, DMK21

This "one shot" (gamma in the chromosphere increased in processing) shows how the very bright but low prominences are associated with the active area. A flare is also visible.

A complex of low prominences - perhaps signifying an active region approaching the limb - was visible on the east limb, but the cloud did not allow me to image it.

Seeing mediocre to poor, transparency poor with interference from high cloud even in the gaps win the low cloud, which was drifting across the solar disc almost constantly.

[NickH]

Superb shot Brian

[Nick Smith]

Excellent shots Brian, nicely caught

Nick

[Helen]

Great stuff Brian - no chance here

Helen

[brianb]

Thanks, Nick Nick & Helen ... I was pleased enough to get a look at the AR before it sneaks off round the back again ... who knows if it will reappear in another fortnight?

[NickH]

It should do...maybe by March Sun will be high enough again and hopefully active enough to start imaging in earnest again.. :-) Looking forward to a good year for the Solar brigade