Category Archives: sunspots

184. Measuring the Compactness of Active Regions

Contributed by Kelvin Moresi. Posted on August 10, 2022

Compactness is one geometric property of a sunspot group that has not yet been systematically quantified. We calculate the compactness of a small sample of δ-spots and β-spots using a minimum bounding circle. On average, the δ-spots are found to be more than twice as compact as the β-spots.

93. Formation of Penumbra in A Sample of Active Regions Observed by the SDO Satellite

Contributed by Mariarita Murabito. Posted on March 29, 2018

Where does a sunspot’s penumbra start to form, on the same side or the opposite side of its opposite-polarity sunspot? When does Evershed flow start to appear, before or after the penumbral formation? These questions are answered through analyzing selected samples observed by the HMI.

90. A Comparative Study of the Eruptive and Non-Eruptive Flares Produced by the Largest Active Region of Solar Cycle 24

Contributed by Ranadeep Sarkar. Posted on March 18, 2018

AR12192, the largest active region in Solar Cycle 24, produced 6 X-class flares, but none of them were associated with a CME. However, a much weaker flare, of M4.0-class, was associated with a CME. Magnetic field and morphological changes are analyzed during these flares to understand why this is the case.

70. Magnetic Flux Emergence & Decay Rates for Sunspots Observed with HMI

Contributed by Aimee Norton. Posted on May 23, 2017

We quantify the emergence and decay rates of ten bipolar active regions using vector magnetic field data from HMI. Our results, placed in context with other observational and modeling results in the literature, confirm a trend that higher flux regions emerge faster and the rate is dependent on the total flux of that region.