MAGNIFICENT ERUPTION: A filament of magnetism curling around the sun's southeastern limb erupted on August 31st, producing a coronal mass ejection (CME), a C8-class solar flare, and one of the most beautiful movies ever recorded by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
The explosion hurled a CME away from the sun traveling faster than 500 km/s (1.1 million mph). The cloud, shown here, is not heading directly toward Earth, but it could deliver a glancing blow to our planet's magnetic field on or about September 3rd. This date is preliminary and may be changed in response to more data from coronagraphs on the Solar and Heliophysics Observatory (SOHO). Stay tuned. Solar Flare alerts: text, phone.
Solar wind
speed: 334.2 km/sec
density: 0.1 protons/cm3
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 1519 UT
X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: C2 1231 UT Sep01
24-hr: C3 0039 UT Sep01
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at: 1500 UT
Daily Sun: 31 Aug 12
Sunspot complex 1562-1563 is crackling with C-class solar flares. Credit: SDO/HMI
Sunspot number: 144
What is the sunspot number?
Updated 31 Aug 2012
Spotless Days
Current Stretch: 0 days
2012 total: 0 days (0%)
2011 total: 2 days (<1%)
2010 total: 51 days (14%)
2009 total: 260 days (71%)
Since 2004: 821 days
Typical Solar Min: 486 days
Update 31 Aug 2012
The Radio Sun
10.7 cm flux: 128 sfu
explanation | more data
Updated 31 Aug 2012
Current Auroral Oval:
Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica
Credit: NOAA/POES
Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 2 quiet
24-hr max: Kp= 2 quiet
explanation | more data
Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 7.1 nT
Bz: 2 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 1527 UT
Coronal Holes: 31 Aug 12
There are no large coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun. Credit: SDO/AIA.
