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2008 01 23, 1125ST –1240ST (1625UT – 1740UT) Solar H-alphaPCW Memorial Observatory, Zanesville, Ohio, USA, Lat: 40.01 / Long: -81.56 Temp: 21.0 °F / -6.1 °C Winds: variable at 5.8 mph Humidity: 63% Seeing: 6/6 Transparency: 3/6 Alt: 28.1 Az: 160.5 Equipment: Internally double stacked Maxscope 60mm, LXD75, 40mm ProOptic Plossl, 21-7mm Zhumell Sketch Media: Black Strathmore Artagain paper, white Conte’ and Prang pencils, white vinyl eraser. Added –30 brightness, +9 contrast after scanning. Tilting Sun program used for digital Sun insert.
The solar disk had long u-shaped very thin filament looking lines reaching almost from the SE limb to the inward 1/4th of the disk. The opening of “u” was facing outward toward the large prominence on that area of the limb. This was the prominence that I concentrated on today for a sequence that spanned only about 45 minutes’ time. Funny, it seemed much longer than that, and as much as it changed in that time frame, I would have expected it to have been longer as well. Seeing was terrific, but transparency was only average with moments of excellent clarity as well as an orange haze all around the disk in my FOV. Differences in the first two sketches almost alarmed me and I worried that I had made one too compact width wise and the other too spread out. There’s a chance that I may have indeed done that, although as a sketcher, I try to make my sketches as true to my observations as I possibly can. Once I recorded the last two, though, I could see the movement of the prominence indeed spreading out, getting fainter to the eastern side of it with each sketch. It was almost as if that side of the prominence was getting weaker and losing structure. I would have loved to stay out all day to record this. The NE prominence was not quite as tall as the SE prominence, but it was easier to view, although I did have to adjust the outside etalon as there was quite a difference between the two prominences for best bandwidth viewing. I normally tweak as many things as I can with the scope to tease out details in my observations, but I normally don’t have to adjust the etalon that much between different prominences. I observed 8 different areas of prominences around the limb total.
Erika Rix is a Freelance Observer for Scientific Frontline® Copyright Erika Rix / Information is protected under the SFL ORG. Educational News Network Copyright Legal Notice / Disclaimer |
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