The geomagnetic field was quiet to minor storm on August 23. Solar wind speed at SOHO ranged between 346 and 563 km/s. A high speed stream associated with CH684 arrived at SOHO after 07h UT and was preceded by a weak co-rotating interaction region.
Solar flux at 17h UTC on 2.8 GHz was 117.2 (increasing 17.1 over the last solar rotation, the measurement at 20h could not be used as it was flare enhanced). The 90 day 10.7 flux at 1 AU was 113.9. The Potsdam WDC planetary A index was 25 (STAR Ap - based on the mean of three hour interval ap indices: 25.1). Three hour interval K indices: 33554242 (planetary), 42554332 (Boulder).
The background x-ray flux is at the class B7 level.
At the time of counting spots (see image time), spots were observed in 7 active regions using 2K resolution (SN: 200) and 4 active regions using 1K resolution (SN: 107) SDO images on the visible solar disk.
Region 12403 [S15W02] developed further and has a
few small magnetic deltas in the large trailing penumbra. A major flare is possible.
Region 12404 [N14W15] was quiet and stable.
Spotted regions not numbered (or interpreted differently) by SWPC:
S4703 [N19E36] was quiet and stable.
S4704 [S22E09] decayed slowly and quietly.
New region S4706 [S15E30] emerged with a penumbra spot.
New region S4707 [S12W16] emerged with penumbra spots.
C2+ flares:
| Magnitude | Peak time (UTC) | Location | AR | Recorded by | Comment |
| C6.6 | 07:14 | S15E09 | 12403 | GOES15 | |
| C2.4 | 09:00 | S15E07 | 12403 | GOES15 | |
| C3.9 (LDE) | 19:07 | 12403 | GOES15 | triggered filament activity to the south, however, no CME observed. Flare began at 18:42 UT and was still in progress when the next flare began | |
| C2.2 | 20:57 | 12403 | GOES15 |
August 21: A southward directed CME was observed in LASCO imagery after
an M1.4/2B event in AR 12403. There is a slight chance that the CME could have
Earth directed components.
August 22: The M1.2 flare early in the day may have been associated with
a very small and weak CME. Only faint emissions were observed over the south
pole in LASCO imagery, no halo or partial halo was observable.
August 23: No obviously Earth directed CMEs were observed.
[Coronal hole
history (since October 2002)]
[Compare today's report to the situation one solar rotation ago:
28 days ago
27 days ago
26 days ago]
A recurrent trans equatorial coronal hole (CH684) was in an Earth facing position on August 19-20. Another recurrent trans equatorial coronal hole (CH685) will likely rotate across the central meridian on August 24.
Long distance low and medium frequency (below 2 MHz) propagation along paths north of due west over upper middle latitudes is poor. Propagation on long distance northeast-southwest paths is poor to fair.
The geomagnetic field is expected to be quiet to unsettled on August 24 due to effects from CH684 and mostly quiet on August 25-26. Quiet to active conditions are possible on August 27-28 when a high speed stream associated with CH685 becomes geoeffective.
| Coronal holes (1) | Coronal mass ejection (2) | M and X class flares (3) |
1) Effects from a coronal hole could reach Earth within the
next 5 days. When the high speed stream has arrived the color changes to green.
2) Effects from a CME are likely to be observed at Earth within 96 hours.
3) There is a possibility of either M or X class flares within the next 48
hours.
Green: 0-30% probability, Yellow: 30-70% probability, Red: 70-100% probability.
(Click on image for 2K resolution)
Compare to the previous day's image.
When available the active region map has a coronal hole polarity overlay where red (pink) is negative and blue is positive.
Data for all numbered solar regions according to the Solar Region Summary provided by NOAA/SWPC. Comments are my own, as is the STAR spot count (spots observed at or inside a few hours before midnight) and data for regions not numbered by SWPC or where SWPC has observed no spots. SWPC active region numbers in the table below and in the active region map above are the historic SWPC/USAF numbers.
| Active region | Date numbered detected |
Spot count | Location at midnight | Area | Classification | SDO / HMI 4K continuum image with magnetic polarity overlays |
Comment | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SWPC | Magnetic (SDO) |
SWPC | STAR | Current | Previous | ||||||
| 2K | 1K | ||||||||||
| 12401 | 2015.08.12 2015.08.13 |
S11W86 |
 |
||||||||
| S4690 | 2015.08.14 | N09W49 | |||||||||
| 12403 | 2015.08.17 2015.08.18 |
66 | 108 | 58 | S15W04 | 0760 | EKC | FKC |
 |
 |
beta-gamma-delta area: 1050 |
| 12404 | 2015.08.19 2015.08.20 |
7 | 11 | 6 | N14W16 | 0030 | CRO | CRO |
 |
 |
|
| S4700 | 2015.08.21 | S16W32 |
 |
||||||||
| S4701 | 2015.08.21 | S22W58 | |||||||||
| S4703 | 2015.08.22 | 5 | N19E36 | 0010 | AXX |
 |
 |
||||
| S4704 | 2015.08.22 | 1 | S22E09 | 0001 | AXX |
 |
 |
||||
| S4706 | 2015.08.23 | 1 | 1 | S15E30 | 0003 | AXX |
 |
||||
| S4707 | 2015.08.23 | 4 | 2 | S12W16 | 0009 | BXO |
 |
||||
| Total spot count: | 73 | 130 | 67 | ||||||||
| Sunspot number: | 93 | 200 | 107 | (total spot count + 10 * number of spotted regions) | |||||||
| Weighted SN: | 86 | 143 | 80 | (Sum of total spot count + classification weighting for each AR. Classification weighting: X=0, R=3, A/S=5, H/K=10) | |||||||
| Relative sunspot number (Wolf number): | 102 | 110 | 91 | k * (sunspot number) As of July 1, 2015: k = 1.1 for SWPC, k = 0.55 for MSN 2K, k = 0.85 for MSN 1K (MSN=Magnetic Sunspot Number) |
|||||||
| Month | Average solar flux | International sunspot number (WDC-SILSO) (4) |
Smoothed sunspot number (4) | Average
ap (3) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Measured | 1 AU | ||||
| 2014.02 | 170.3 (cycle peak) |
166.3 | 146.1 (cycle peak) | 110.5 (+1.2) | 10.70 |
| 2014.03 | 149.9 | 148.5 | 128.7 | 114.3 (+3.8) | 4.88 |
| 2014.04 | 143.9 | 144.8 | 112.5 | 116.4 (+2.1) (solar max) | 7.88 |
| 2014.05 | 129.7 | 132.9 | 112.5 | 115.0 (-1.4) | 5.75 |
| 2014.06 | 122.0 | 125.8 | 102.9 | 114.1 (-0.9) | 6.72 |
| 2014.07 | 137.4 | 141.8 | 100.2 | 112.6 (-1.5) | 4.50 |
| 2014.08 | 124.7 | 127.9 | 106.9 | 108.3 (-4.3) | 7.71 |
| 2014.09 | 146.6 | 148.1 | 130.0 | 101.9 (-6.4) | 9.78 |
| 2014.10 | 153.4 | 152.9 | 90.0 | 97.4 (-4.5) | 8.96 |
| 2014.11 | 154.8 | 151.4 | 103.6 | 95.0 (-2.4) | 9.33 |
| 2014.12 | 158.7 | 153.8 | 112.9 | 92.6 (-2.4) | 11.24 |
| 2015.01 | 141.9 | 137.3 | 93.0 | 89.8 (-2.8) | 9.46 |
| 2015.02 | 129.1 | 126.0 | 66.7 | (86.8 projected, -3.0) | 9.92 |
| 2015.03 | 125.9 | 124.6 | 54.5 | (83.1 projected, -3.7) | 16.14 |
| 2015.04 | 128.8 | 129.7 | 78.0 | (79.8 projected, -3.3) | 10.73 |
| 2015.05 | 120.0 | 122.6 | 90.0 | (77.4 projected, -2.4) | 8.29 |
| 2015.06 | 122.3 | 126.1 | 68.3 | (73.9 projected, -3.5) | 13.15 |
| 2015.07 | 107.0 | 110.8 | 66.4 | (70.2 projected, -3.7) | 8.83 |
| 2015.08 | (104.2) | 47.8 (2A) / 64.4 (2B) / 76.9 (2C) | (69.0 projected, -1.2) | (12.4) | |
1) Running average based on the daily 20:00 UTC observed solar flux value at
2800 MHz.
2A) Current impact on the monthly sunspot number based on the Boulder
(NOAA/SWPC) sunspot number (accumulated daily sunspots / month days).
2B)
Boulder SN current month average to date.
2C) STAR SDO 1K Wolf number 30 day
average.
3) Running average based on the quicklook and definitive Potsdam WDC ap
indices. Values in red are based on the definitive
international
GFZ Potsdam
WDC
ap indices.
4) Updated to new data set from WDC-SILSO on July 1, 2015
This report has been prepared by Jan Alvestad. It is based on the analysis of data from whatever sources are available at the time the report is prepared. All time references are to Universal Time. Comments and suggestions are always welcome.
SDO images are courtesy of NASA/SDO and the AIA, EVE, and HMI science teams.
