Solar wind stream blowing from big coronal hole, new sunspot regions forming

coronal-hole-solar-wind-stream-sunspot

The dark vertical coronal hole, about 120,000 km wide and more than a million km long, stretches in the center of the Sun. A solar wind stream flowing from the indicated coronal hole should reach Earth on Jan. 16-17, possibly sparking auroras at high-latitudes. Coronal holes are places where the sun’s magnetic field opens up and allows the solar wind to escape. (SpaceWeather)

New sunspots formed yesterday, including fast growing Sunspot 1396 in the northern hemisphere. A second region AR 1397 formed in the southern hemisphere and third sunspot is forming just to the southwest of existing region 1395, and was numbered 1398. An active region is hiding on the northeast limb and will soon begin to rotate into direct Earth view. An explosion Thursday morning, produced a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) off the northeast limb. That blast registered as a very long duration C-Class flare. (Watch the video!) (SolarHam)

CURRENT CONDITIONS:

Solar wind
speed: 403.4 km/sec
density: 3.8 protons/cm3

X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: C2 0335 UT Jan14
24-hr: C2 0335 UT Jan14

The Radio Sun
10.7 cm flux: 124 sfu

Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 1 quiet
24-hr max: Kp= 1 quiet

Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal2.1 nT
Bz0.1 nT south 

The auroras were sparked by the onset of a solar wind stream (~550 km/s), which reached Earth during the early hours of Jan. 13th causing wonderfull auroras.

Share:

Commenting rules and guidelines

We value the thoughts and opinions of our readers and welcome healthy discussions on our website. In order to maintain a respectful and positive community, we ask that all commenters follow these rules:

  • Treat others with kindness and respect.
  • Stay on topic and contribute to the conversation in a meaningful way.
  • Do not use abusive or hateful language.
  • Do not spam or promote unrelated products or services.
  • Do not post any personal information or content that is illegal, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate.

We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these rules. By commenting on our website, you agree to abide by these guidelines. Thank you for helping to create a positive and welcoming environment for all.

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *