Our temporary observing setups are assembled on the base/floor of the planned observatory. The light orange bucket, at center, protects an empty electrical conduit that will provide utility power to a permanent pier that will be installed there. In the foreground is a table supporting a light shield for the laptop computer. The large tripod next to the table supports the white light imaging scope. In the background is the Sky-Watcher SolarQuest mount with our Coronado hydrogen-alpha solar scope attached.
We’re still doing open-air astronomy though we have a nice, solid, clean, and level space to set up our gear! This is the setup we were using today to record the sunspot at active region 4079 as it is about to roll over the solar limb/horizon. Fortunately, though it’s a very temporary setup, the portable gear we use for casual solar imaging is fairly easy to set up.
From an unusual vantage point, a picture of the solar setup used today to record the passage of active region 4079 toward Sun’s horizon. The red object is the planetary camera.
We continued experiments to determine what gear will work together for imaging. There were a few surprises and there’s need for more experimentation. What we settled on for today’s solar efforts is pictured above and includes: Askar 103 APO telescope, Meade LXD75 Goto Mount, TeleVue 2X Barlow, Baader Planetarium Safety Herschel Wedge, and ZWO ASI678MM monochrome planetary camera.
The sun as it appeared at 11:32 AM EDT on May 10, 2025. Sunspot/Active Region numbers are labeled in this image with AR4079 very near the solar western limb or edge.
Although the sky was clear, seeing was a bit shaky so once again, sharpness wasn’t what we’d like. Still, in all, we got the shot we wanted and learned a few things about our astronomy equipment. Also, the sky was blue, the air was pleasant, and birds were singing, so not a bad way to spend a couple of hours.
A closeup view of the sunspot at AR4079. There is a bright line splitting the dark central umbra of the sunspot, the gray penumbra radiating in filaments around it. White cloud-like areas surround the sunspot, especially to its north; called plage, they are associated with areas of concentrated magnetic field.
The Sun, as it appeared on April 17, 2025, in hydrogen-alpha light. The image was recorded using a Coronado solar telescope, a Sky-Watcher SolarQuest mount, and a ZWO ASI 678MM camera. Photo by James Guilford.
Taking advantage of midday clear skies, Thursday, we set up the hydrogen-alpha telescope and did a little observing and imaging. Seeing conditions were only good but we could make out several prominences along Sun’s limb. (The proms did not record well and we need to figure out how to enhance their visibility in our images.) Most notable, however, was the shear number of filaments in Sun’s northern hemisphere. None visible in the south! Fragments of exploding filaments launched from Sun and produced two CMEs that, when they reached Earth on April 16, caused strong geomagnetic storm activity and widespread auroras. The storm, however, died out before northern lights could be seen here.
The Sky-Watcher SolarQuest mount is shown here aiming our Coronado 60mm hydrogen-alpha solar telescope at Sun.
Aiding in our efforts was a device we used for the very first time in this session: The Sky-Watcher SolarQuest with its HelioFind system. The device is lightweight, easily supported our rather robust Coronado solar telescope, and was exceptionally easy to learn and operate. Essentially, all that was needed was to set the tripod up so that it was level, turn the device on, and let it do its thing! It is powered by four AA batteries, placed inside the unit. As an alt-az mount, no counterweights or muliti-axis balancing was needed; just mount the scope with its balance point at the center of the dovetail clamp. No remote control, no app, the compact and self-contained SolarQuest established GPS contact, leveled the scope, then looked for Sun. The SolarQuest turned and elevated the telescope, quickly acquiring our nearest star. When the motion stopped, we looked through the eyepiece to discover Sun well within the field of view. A few nudges of the system’s adjustment buttons and Sun was centered. Tracking was excellent throughout the observing/imaging session. Provision is made for further refinement of tracking but that adjustment was unnecessary for the day’s activity. The SolarQuest will make our daytime astronomy a whole lot more convenient and enjoyable!
A business-class jet airplane trailing twin contrails is seen in silhouette against the roiling surface of the sun. The image is recorded in hydrogen-alpha light. Photo by James Guilford.
We had just finished setting up for some solar astronomy and tapped the button to begin a video sequence when something flashed across the computer screen. A jet appeared for less than a second, contrails briefly persisting, silhouetted against the roiling solar disk! We’ve only seen this twice while observing Sun, this being the second time, and we only captured this image by shear luck. The first time we witnessed a solar “photo-bombing” was under similar circumstances. Previously, we had completed setup, was refining focus, and just about to begin recording exposures. We missed imaging that encounter by about the same interval as we succeeded this time!
Sunspots AR3716, AR3713, and AR3712, imaged June 22, 2024, 12:59 UTC, by James Guilford
I continued my practice of daily imaging of the sun for some weeks now. While still deciding precisely how to use and display the images I’m collecting, I’m also trying to standardize how the images are captured and establish a workflow in editing; that is in an effort to give the daily pictures the same overall size and appearance except for details, such as sunspots, where we want to observe changes. It’s not as easy as it may seem, especially when attempting to constantly improve image quality. This ought to become simpler once I have a permanent setup protected day-to-day within an observatory structure.
Sunspots AR3713 and AR3712, the more pronounced of the three large groups, have been interesting to watch as they traversed the visible side of Sun. Today (June 22), braving the morning’s already hot and humid conditions, I went to the extra work of setting up the Vixen VC200L Cassegrain telescope in an effort to achieve high quality images of the two — plus AR3716 — big sunspot groups before they disappear over the western solar limb. Both of the active regions reportedly harbor opposing magnetic energies which could, at any time, reconnect and throw off powerful flares but both have been surprisingly quiet. The next few days will be the last when an outburst from AR3713 or AR3712 might affect Earth.
The Sun, June 22, 2024 at 13:07 UTC from Medina, Ohio USA. Equipment: Canon EOS 7D Mk. 2, Canon EF 400mm 1:5.6 L Lens, 2X Extender, and Baader Film White Light Filter. False Color Applied. Image Credit: James Guilford / Stella-Luna Observatory
Stella-Luna Observatory 