Best Solar Images - Part 5

Sunspots!

My solar imaging activities are coming to an end. I've spent 15 years happily watching the ever-changing solar chromosphere and capturing images with my solar telescope. Now is a good time to look back at some highlights and gather my best images together in one place. In this fifth post I'll present my best sunspot images.

All images presented here were made with a Lunt 100mm single-stacked hydrogen-alpha solar telescope. Images captured before May 5, 2015, were made with a DMK41AUO2.AS camera and a 2X Barlow lens. Images captured after May 5, 2015, were made with a ZWO ASI174MM camera with a 3X Barlow lens. Often, single image fields of view were combined to include larger portions of the Sun. These separate panels were later stitched together into a single combined image using Photoshop.

The Sun's color seen by eye through the Lunt telescope's eyepiece is not yellow but rather a deep hydrogen-alpha red. The cameras I used are monochromatic cameras which produce only black and white images. I have arbitrarily added different colors to the original grayscale images below. These added colors have no physical significance. I merely liked them better than grayscale.

Finally, these images are best viewed at full size on a monitor, laptop screen, or projected on a TV. Smart phone viewing is a disappointing experience. Click on the images to get the full-size version.

My observing time from 2011 to 2025 included two eleven-year sunspot activity cycles: numbers 24 and 25.  Cycle 24 began in 2008 and reached a maximum in about April of 2014. I had plenty of opportunities to watch sunspot activity rise and fall through maximum. Cycle 24 ended in 2019 and cycle 25 began a slow activity rise reaching a maximum in about October of 2024. Once again, I was able to see lots of action centered on the peak. Now sunspots are slowly winding down again as my observing ability declines. Let's look at some sunspots!

Begin with one of my earliest detailed images - double umbra sunspot 1263 from August 1, 2011. 

Next is one of my first successful mosaics from November 8, 2011. This 9-panel mosaic has everything: several sunspots, filaments, and prominences. Sunspots 1341, 1342, 1343, and 1339. 

A 10-panel mosaic from June 7, 2014, show a wonderful sunspot collection with a spectacular c-shaped prominence in the middle. Three sunspot pairs on the left are connected by magnetic loops. Sunspots 2077, 2079, 2080, 2082, and 2085.  

October 21, 2014, featured astounding sunspot 2192 seen below in the next three images. October 21st was four days before it erupted in a powerful X-class flare. 

I inserted a picture of Earth to scale for comparison with the enormous sunspot. 

Next is a time lapse of 35 minutes of roiling, slightly flaring activity around sunspot 2192 on October 21st. Unfortunately, clouds interfered and ultimately ended my recording. 

In sunspot group 2403 on August 25, 2015, two umbra regions seem to be reaching out to magnetically connect across the gap between.  

I like the 3D appearance of sunspot 2529 on April 16, 2016. Filaments rise up like jets from a lawn sprinkler. Notice the small white flare emerging from the umbra's right.  

Sunspot group 2645 on April 2, 2017, was another example of magnetic loops in the midst of umbras.  

A flare and giant prominence accompanied sunspot group 2665 on July 8, 2017.  

On April 2, 2022, sunspot 2976 was near the limb.  

Also on April 2, 2022, an odd comma-shaped white eruption emerged from the umbra of sunspot 2978. (Click to enlarge.) 

The next image from April 20, 2022, is one of the nicest solar portraits I've made! Sunspots 2993, 2994, 2995, filaments, active areas, and prominences all in one picture! 

Sunspot 3055 is centered among filaments on July 12, 2022, in the next image. 

A spike eruption originates in a white area near sunspot 3329 on February 18, 2023. A dark magnetic arch also rises to the sunspot's left. (Click to enlarge.)  

Sunspots 3313, 3311, and 3314 form a line pointing toward prominences on May 22, 2023.  

Another sunspot line from June 5, 2023, includes sunspots 3323, 3321, and 3320. 

Emerging sunspot 3372 with spiky eruptions is rotating into view around the limb on July 11, 2023. 

The next 2-panel mosaic from July 11, 2023, shows sunspots 3361, 3362, 3366 and 3367 along with prominences on the opposite side of the Sun from the previous image.  

Yet another July 11, 2023, image, a 5-panel mosaic, shows the oddly shaped umbra of sunspot 3363 along with prominences.  

2023 was a good year for sunspots. The next image shows a portrait of sunspots 3500, 3494, and 3493 on November 23, 2023. A giant prominence adds to the scene.  

Also, on November 23, 2023, in a region above the one in the previous picture we see a "filaprom" along with sunspots 3491, 3192, and 3190.  

Peak activity of sunspot cycle 25 was approaching on April 23, 2024, when complicated sunspots 3647 and 3645 appeared near the limb.  

At least seven separate umbras were visible in this image from July 28, 2024.  

An odd flare spews from the side of sunspot 3852's umbra in the next image from October 9, 2024.  

Whoa! Check out the close sunspot grouping in the next 3-panel mosaic from October 25, 2024!  

I couldn't resist including a cropped version of the previous picture processed to include prominences! This is another of my favorite images.  

The two bottom most sunspots in the next 12-panel mosaic from January 17, 2025, show really nice magnetic connections when the image is viewed at full size.  

Finally, one last close sunspot grouping from August 27, 2025 is next. This 2-panel mosaic shows a nice "filaprom" on the bottom limb.  

As solar cycle 25 begins to wind down it's less likely I will ever use my solar telescope again in 2026 or beyond. Conditions would have to be nearly perfect: good health, clear sky, mild temperature, little wind, and some exciting scenery on the Sun. It's not impossible, but getting more unlikely by the day. I'm content and happy with the images I've produced over the past 15 years. The next post will describe the equipment used to capture all my solar images. 

Best Solar Images - Part 4

Special Events

My solar imaging activities are coming to an end. I've spent 15 years happily watching the ever-changing solar chromosphere and capturing images with my solar telescope. Now is a good time to look back at some highlights and gather my best images together in one place. In this fourth post I'll present images of unique solar events and activity I was fortunate enough to observe. In an upcoming post I'll present my best sunspot images.

All images presented here were made with a Lunt 100mm single-stacked hydrogen-alpha solar telescope. Each image will indicate the camera and Barlow lens used. Often, single image fields of view were combined to include larger portions of the Sun. These separate panels were later stitched together into a single combined image using Photoshop.

The Sun's color seen by eye through the Lunt telescope's eyepiece is not yellow but rather a deep hydrogen-alpha red. The cameras I used are monochromatic cameras which produce only black and white images. I have arbitrarily added different colors to the original grayscale images below. These added colors have no physical significance. I merely liked them better than grayscale.

Finally, these images are best viewed at full size on a monitor, laptop screen, or projected on a TV. Smart phone viewing is a disappointing experience. Click on the images to get the full-size version.

Sometimes, just by pure luck, I happened to be observing when solar activity increased. For example, on October 17, 2014, I saw sunspot 2192 emit a rapid spike off the limb from a white area near the umbra. Sunspot 2192 was just emerging around the eastern solar limb. The next image made with a DMK41AUO2.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens shows the spike. The image is processed to enhance relatively dim features, so the disc is overexposed.

When I saw rapid changes near this sunspot, I began capturing one image every 60 seconds for 66 minutes from 2:37 EDT to 3:43 EDT. The images were then assembled into the following time lapse movie where 66 minutes of action are compressed into 6.6 seconds. The movie shows the dramatic spike eruption as well as changes in the neighboring prominence. The 35MB movie might take a while to load, but it's worth the wait!

Sunspot 2192 was quite a performer! Eight days later on October 25, 2014, at 1:57 EDT I captured the following image of 2192 which had now rotated past center on the solar disc. The white overexposed area in the next picture is a powerful solar flare! (All October 25, 2014, images were made with a DMK41AUO2.AS camera with a 2X Barlow lens.)

At 3:09 EDT after 69 minutes elapsed the flare had diminished as seen in the less dramatic overexposed area in the next image.
The flare had actually peaked at 1:09 EDT according to space weather websites. So, my first observation was 48 minutes after the officially reported peak. The flare was diminishing when I observed it. If I had begun observing an hour sooner, I would have captured the rise of the flare toward its peak instead of its decline.

The following 22-panel mosaic shows the sunspot 2192 flare as it appeared in context on the entire solar disc.

This was an X1 flare, the most powerful class of solar flares. Solar flares are classified according to their rate of energy output in X-rays. An X1 flare gushes energy at a rate greater than 0.0001 watts per square meter in X-ray wavelengths between 0.1 and 0.8 nanometers as measured by detectors in geosynchronous orbit around Earth. This 0.0001 watts may not seem like a lot of power per square meter, but this is the flux measured near Earth far away from the concentrated source on the Sun. By the time X-rays travel to Earth from the Sun they have spread out over a tremendous area. A square meter near Earth receives only 0.0001 watts, but at the source on the Sun energy is emitted at the rate of about 14 billion gigawatts!!! That's equivalent to the power output of 14 billion nuclear power plants!! It's a good thing we're so far from the Sun!

After collecting images for the disc mosaic above I thought the active sunspot might still be changing enough to make an interesting movie. So, I recorded movie frames, one every 60 seconds, beginning at 3:08 EDT. When 30 minutes had elapsed, it seemed like nothing was happening, so I stopped recording at 3:38 EDT. The 31-frame movie below shows the aftermath of the flare. At the beginning of the movie white areas are brightest. Over the next 30 minutes brightness diminishes as the flare continues to die down. The spot was perfectly positioned for making a long movie. Unfortunately, I gave up too soon! Lots of details are changing within the sunspot group, although these changes weren't easily apparent as I captured video clips one by one. The October 25, 2014 flare was the biggest one I ever saw during 15 years of observing.

Using a DMK41AUO2.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens on March 29, 2015, I captured a different eruption on the limb in a single image shown next. The eruption changed relatively rapidly, but I didn't attempt to make a time-lapse movie this time. 

On September 14, 2015, another spike eruption happened near sunspot 2418. The following single image was made with a ZWO ASI174 camera and a 5X Barlow lens. 

Continuing with unusual events, I was lucky enough to capture a transit of Mercury on May 9, 2016! Mercury lines up in front of the Sun every 115.9 days as seen from Earth. During these alignments Mercury is usually above or below the Sun, but, sometimes, Mercury transits directly across the face of the Sun as it did on May 9th. There are 13 or 14 Mercury transits per century compared to only two for Venus. I've been fortunate to see both Venus transits in 2004 and 2012, but I'm running out of time for transit observing. Another Mercury transit happened in 2019, but I missed that one. At this point there will be no Venus transits for the remainder of my life. I will be taking a dirt nap before the next Mercury transit occurs in 2032! So, I was motivated to make extra effort to observe the 2016 transit in spite of cloudy conditions. The next image made with a ZWO ASI174MM camera and 5X Barlow lens shows Mercury's black disc against the background Sun. The angular diameter of Mercury's disc here is only 12 arc seconds. 
Another unusual event was the partial solar eclipse of August 21, 2017, visible from my backyard in Williamsburg, VA. Using a ZWO ASI174 camera with a 5X Barlow lens I recorded the passage of the lunar disc across various parts of the Sun. Watching the Moon approach and cover elongated sunspot 2671 was particularly nice! The first picture below is a single image of 2671 with the curved lunar limb approaching to its right. I made two time lapse animations - one as the lunar limb approached and one as the lunar limb receded from 2671. 

Finally, I observed a minor flare in sunspots 3116 and 3112 on October 7, 2022, with a ZWO ASI174MM and 3X Barlow. The next picture is a single image of the sunspots with the white overexposed flare to the left. 

I made an animation covering 21 minutes of the October 7, 2022 flare activity. 

My next post will feature sunspots. 

Best Solar Images - Part 3

Prominences!

My solar imaging activities are coming to an end. I've spent 15 years happily watching the ever-changing solar chromosphere and capturing images with my solar telescope. Now is a good time to look back at some highlights and gather my best images together in one place. In this third post I'll present images of solar prominences silhouetted along the limb. In two upcoming posts I'll present other examples of solar features and action.

All images presented here were made with a Lunt 100mm single-stacked hydrogen-alpha solar telescope. Each image will indicate the camera and Barlow lens used. Often, single image fields of view were combined to include larger portions of the Sun. These separate panels were later stitched together into a single combined image using Photoshop.

The Sun's color seen by eye through the Lunt telescope's eyepiece is not yellow but rather a deep hydrogen-alpha red. The cameras I used are monochromatic cameras which produce only black and white images. I have arbitrarily added yellow color to the original grayscale images below. These added colors have no physical significance. I merely liked them better than grayscale.

Finally, these images are best viewed at full size on a monitor, laptop screen, or projected on a TV. Smart phone viewing is a disappointing experience. Click on the images to get the full-size version.

When dark disc filaments are eventually carried to the solar limb by the Sun's rotation, they are displayed there in outline against the background sky. Then they are seen as prominences - flame-like features on the solar limb. In all the images below I've created an artificial eclipse where the Sun's disc is black and only the prominences themselves are visible around the limb. I've also changed these grayscale images to yellow because yellow looks nice and seems to stand out on screens. When viewing full circumference mosaics enlarge to full size and then move systematically around the limb to see the best detail.

My first prominence portrait is a portion of the limb on June 15, 2013, with a tall spiky prominence. The image is a 7-panel mosaic made with a DMK41AU02.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens. 

On July 16, 2013, a fan-shaped prominence can be seen at bottom as well as another spiky prominence midway along the limb. This 3-panel mosaic was made with a DMK41AU02.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens. 

The next full circumference 18-panel mosaic from August 24, 2013, shows delicate prominences and spicules. Scroll around the full-sized image to see them best. It was made with a DMK41AU02.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens. 

Next is an image of two prominences from September 14, 2013. This is a 2-panel mosaic made with a DMK41AU02.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens. 

A variety of prominence shapes are present in the next 19-panel full-circumference mosaic made on May 4, 2014, with a DMK41AU02.AS camera and 2X Barlow lens. 

Another full circumference mosaic from May 23, 2015, is shown next. It is composed of 17 panels and shows a number of prominences as well as spicules in some areas. It was made using a ZWO ASI174MM camera with a 3X Barlow lens.

The next picture is not a mosaic. It's just a single image from May 16, 2016, made using a ZWO ASI174MM camera with a 5X Barlow lens. It features a nice prominence and spicules along the limb.

Several delicate prominences are present in the next image from May 7, 2019. This 5-panel mosaic was made using a ZWO ASI174MM camera with a 3X Barlow lens.

Scroll around the full-size perimeter of the following 16-panel mosaic from August 19, 2023. A beautiful prominence collection is revealed by a ZWO ASI174MM camera with a 3X Barlow lens. Ignore the slight imperfection of the eclipsing black disc. 

No matter how dramatic solar disc features might be, it's always a thrill to roam around the limb inspecting the prominences on display. My next post will feature special events on the Sun.