Solar Terrestrial Activity Report

Activity chart

Last major update issued on July 18, 2021 at 09:40 UT.

Charts (* = updated daily) Data and archive
  Solar wind (*) Solar and geomagnetic data - last month (*)
  Electron fluence (*) Archived daily reports and monthly data since 2003.01 (July 2, 2021)
Solar cycle Solar cycles 23-25 (July 1, 2021) Historical solar and geomagnetic data charts 1954-2006 (April 5, 2007)
  Cycle 24-25 progress (July 1, 2021) Noon SDO sunspot count 1K image / 4K (*)
  Solar cycles 1-24 (June 1, 2020) POES auroral activity level October 2009 - December 2012]
  Comparison of cycles 21-25 (July 1, 2021) 3rd SSN Workshop, Tucson, 2013
  Comparison of cycles 12-14, 16, 24-25 (July 1, 2021) 4th SSN Workshop, Locarno, 2014
  Solar polar fields vs. solar cycles (January 7, 2021) Cycle 25 spots (final update December 25, 2019)
  Solar cycles 24-25 using 365d smoothing Research: Solar Cycle 25 Started on November 17, 2019 with 365 Days Smoothing

Recent activity

The geomagnetic field was quiet on July 17. The high latitude magnetometer at Andenes recorded quiet to unsettled conditions.

Solar flux density measured at 20h UT on 2.8 GHz was 77.4 - increasing 1.0 over the previous solar rotation. (Centered 1 year average SF at 1 AU - 183 days ago: 77.16). The Potsdam WDC planetary A index was 4 (STAR Ap - based on the mean of three hour interval ap indices: 3.5). Three hour interval K indices: 11011210 (planetary), 21111211 (Boulder), 33111220 (Andenes).

The background x-ray flux is at the class B1 level (GOES 16).

At the time of counting spots (see image time), spots were observed in 8 active regions using 2K resolution (SN: 112) and in 5 active regions using 1K resolution (SN: 74) SDO/HMI images.

Region 12841 [S20W42] reemerged with a tiny spot.
Region 12842 [N24W12] developed slowly and quietly.
Region 12844 [S43E49] decayed slowly and quietly.
New region 12845 [S16W04] emerged early in the day and developed all day. C flares are possible.

Spotted regions not observed (or interpreted differently) by SWPC:
S6981 [N20E07] gained a few tiny spots.
New region S6991 [S31E52] emerged with tiny spots.
New region S6992 [S21W20] emerged with a tiny spot.
New region S6993 [N35E13] emerged with a tiny spot.

What was likely a huge flare from a region several days behind the northeast limb was observed starting in SDO/AIA imagery at 05:07 UT. This event was associated with a type II radio sweep and an impressive EIT wave propagating across most of the visible eastern hemisphere. A large CME was observed off the east limb. Another active region will probably rotate into view further north on the northeast limb today.

C2+ flares:

Magnitude Peak time (UT) Location AR Recorded by Comment
           

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs)

July 15-17: No obviously Earth directed CMEs were observed in available LASCO imagery.

Coronal holes

[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]

No obvious coronal holes are currently in or near Earth facing locations.

Propagation

Long distance low and medium frequency (below 2 MHz) propagation along paths north of due west over upper middle and high latitudes is fair. Propagation on long distance northeast-southwest paths is poor.

Forecast

The geomagnetic field is expected to be quiet on July 18-20.

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.

Active solar regions


(Click on image for 2K resolution). 4K resolution. Compare to the previous day's image.
0.5K 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 officially numbered solar regions according to the Solar Region Summary provided by NOAA/SWPC, all other regions are numbered sequentially as they emerge using the STAR spot number. 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. SWPC data considered to be not sufficiently precise (location, area, classification) are red colored.

Active region SWPC date numbered
STAR detected
Spot count Location at midnight Area Classification SDO / HMI 4K continuum
image with magnetic polarity overlays
Comment
SWPC/
USAF
Magnetic
(SDO)
SWPC STAR Current Previous
2K 1K
12841 2021.07.08
2021.07.09
  1   S18W53 0001   AXX   location: S20W42
12842 2021.07.09
2021.07.10
5 21 10 N26W15 0040 CSO DSI area: 0090

location: N24W12

12843 2021.07.12
2021.07.14
1     S18W86 0010 AXX     rotated out of view
S6980 2021.07.12       N18W41            
S6981 2021.07.13   4 1 N20E07 0010   BXO  
S6983 2021.07.13       S24W53            
S6984 2021.07.14       N14E01            
S6985 2021.07.14       S21E15            
S6986 2021.07.15       N07W17            
12844 2021.07.15
2021.07.16
1 3 1 S43E49 0010 AXX HRX

area: 0020

S6988 2021.07.16       N24W52          
12845 2021.07.17
2021.07.17
6 18 10 S15W06 0030 BXI DAI   was: AR S6989

area: 0120

location: S16W04

S6990 2021.07.17       S11W17          
S6991 2021.07.17   3 2 S31E56 0010   BXO    
S6992 2021.07.17   1   S21W20 0003   AXX    
S6993 2021.07.17   1   N35E13 0001   AXX    
Total spot count: 13 52 24  
Sunspot number: 53 112 74  (total spot count + 10 * number of spotted regions)
Weighted SN: 18 65 37  (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): 58 62 59 k * (sunspot number)
As of May 7, 2016: k = 1.1 for SWPC, k = 0.55 for STAR 2K, k = 0.80 for STAR 1K

Monthly solar cycle data

Month Average solar flux International sunspot number
(WDC-SILSO)
Smoothed sunspot number (4) Average ap
(3)
Measured 1 AU
2014.02 170.3
(cycle peak)
166.3 146.1 (cycle peak) 110.5 10.70
2014.04 143.9 144.8 112.5 116.4 (solar max) 7.88
2017.09 91.3 92.3 43.6 18.2 (-1.3) 18.22
(cycle peak)
2019.11 70.2 68.7 0.5 2.0 (-0.6)
(Solar minimum using 365d smoothing:
November 17, 2019)
4.19
2019.12 70.8 68.6 1.6 1.8 (-0.2)
(ISN 13 months smoothed
solar minimum)
3.22
2020.01 72.2 69.9 6.4 2.2 (+0.4) 4.39
2020.02 71.0 69.3 0.4 2.7 (+0.5) 6.16
2020.03 70.2 69.5 1.5 3.0 (+0.3) 5.63
2020.04 69.5 70.0 5.4 3.6 (+0.6) 5.32
2020.05 69.0 70.6 0.2 5.6 (+2.0) 3.80
2020.06 69.5 71.7 5.8 7.9 (+2.3) 3.75
2020.07 69.5 71.8 6.3 9.0 (+1.1) 4.28
2020.08 71.6 73.4 7.6 9.5 (+0.5) 5.68
2020.09 70.7 71.4 0.7 10.5 (+1.0) 8.59
2020.10 74.6 74.2 14.6 11.9 (+1.4) 6.13
2020.11 89.9 88.0 34.5 13.6 (+1.7) 4.77
2020.12 86.9 84.2 23.1 15.3 (+1.7) 4.72
2021.01 76.0 73.6 10.4 (17.5 projected, +2.2) 4.39
2021.02 74.3 72.4 8.3 (20.3 projected, +2.8) 9.50
2021.03 76.0 75.2 17.3 (23.7 projected, +3.4) 10.17
2021.04 75.9 76.4 24.5 (27.8 projected, +4.1) 8.40
2021.05 75.3 77.1 21.2 (30.5 projected, +2.7) 6.50
2021.06 79.4 81.8 25.3 (33.7 projected, +3.2) 5.52
2021.07 79.9 (1)   20.9 (2A) / 38.1 (2B) / 47.8 (2C) (38.3 projected, +4.6) (5.2)
2021.08       (43.0 projected, +4.7)  
2021.09       (48.6 projected, +5.6)  
2021.10       (53.0 projected, +4.4)  
2021.11       (57.6 projected, +4.6)  
2021.12       (63.5 projected, +5.9)  

1) Running average based on the daily 20:00 UTC observed solar flux value at 2800 MHz and any corrections applied to that measurement.
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) Source: SIDC-SILSO.

Solar cycles 24-25 transition

Smoothed SF and sunspot numbers

 

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.