National Solar Observatory

🎨☀️ Science and art met in a unique way during a visit to the U.S. National Science Foundation Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope by members of the Ka Ipu Kukui Fellows, a nonprofit, community-based program that identifies and develops young leaders in Maui County, Hawaiʻi.

Local artist Maggie Sutrov captured her impressions during her visit in a series of beautiful watercolor sketches, highlighting the people, instruments, and spaces she encountered at the Inouye.

Thank you, Maggie, for sharing your creative perspective and for capturing the Inouye through an artist's eyes!

Solar Activity Report: July 6-12, 2026

Solar activity during the past week showed a significant decrease compared with the preceding week. By Tuesday, the average X‑ray flux level had declined to the B category level, where it remained despite intermittent M‑ and C‑class flares. The strongest event of the week was an impulsive M4.0 flare on July 7 from active region 14482. This region also produced two additional notable flares: M1.5 on July 8 and M1.1 on July 9. Another M‑class event, a long‑duration M1.1 flare, was observed on July 12 from active region 14485. The locations of these two active regions on July 8 are shown in the attached magnetogram. The least active day of the week was July 11, when flaring was limited to C1‑level activity from AR 14485. These flares generated several CMEs, though none had an Earth‑directed component.

Helioseismic maps of the far side indicate that three active regions, 14478, 14479, and 14480, remain on the back hemisphere of the Sun, not visible from Earth. These regions produced elevated level activity while on the front side, including an X‑class flare and multiple M‑class flares, before rotating to the far side around July 5 - 6. They are expected to return to the front side toward the end of this week or early next week, provided they do not decay over the next few days.

Data by NSF-NOAA GONG, operated by NSF NSO.
Additional Credits: Jain/Oien/NSF/GONG/NSO/AURA, with contributions by NOAA.

Zoom in on the Sun with this incredible, newly released image from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, the largest solar telescope in the world! 🔎☀️

This view of an active region was captured in H-alpha light with the Inouye's Visible Broadband Imager (VBI). H-alpha light reveals details of the solar chromosphere, where the interaction between magnetic fields and solar plasma generate intricate filamentary structures, called fibrils, and bright regions, called plages. This image also shows a large sunspot and its surrounding penumbra.

This image was created using scientific data processed for general audiences and is not intended for scientific analysis. The Inouye Solar Telescope was built and operated by the NSF Naitonal Solar Observatory in Maui, Hawai'i.
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Solar Activity Report: June 29-July 5, 2026

Solar activity ranged from moderate to high throughout the reporting period. Multiple C‑ and M‑class flares occurred each day, along with two X‑class flares on separate days. In total, 42 M‑class flares were recorded, majority of them originating from active regions 14475, 14478, 14479, and 14480, which produced 3, 5, 30, and 4 M‑class flares, respectively. An M1.4 flare from active region 14479 was the strongest event on June 29. Activity reached high levels on June 30 with an X1.1 flare from the same region and an M5.8 flare from active region 14475. A sustained sequence of M‑class flares kept activity high on July 1 with an M8.5 flare produced by the region 14478.

Activity remained moderate on July 2 and July 3, with several M‑class flares from regions 14478, 14479 and 14480. The strongest was an M4.2 flare from region 14479 on July 2. The same region produced an M6.7 flare on July 3 from the northern hemisphere, followed shortly by an M6.3 flare from region 14478 in the southern hemisphere. The activity rose to high levels again on July 4, with more than ten M‑class flares and one X‑class flare. The X1.3 event originated near the southeast limb from active region 14482 as it rotated toward the Earth‑facing side. The high activity persisted on July 5, with nine M‑class flares; the largest was an M5.3 flare from region 14479.

Region 14478 was the largest active region during this period (see: https://gongnisp.blogspot.com/2026/06/the-largest-sunspot-group-of-2006.html?m=1). All major flare‑producing regions are now approaching or crossing the west limb, leaving the Earth‑facing side less active. Several CMEs were observed, some producing glancing impacts on Earth.

The latest helioseismic map of the far hemisphere shows several active regions, some of which remain roughly two weeks away from rotating into Earth view, provided their magnetic signatures persist. A moderate‑sized region near the equator in the southern hemisphere is expected to reach the east limb around July 12. Collectively, these regions may contribute to elevated activity on the far side that will be hidden from direct observations.

Data by NSF-NOAA GONG, operated by NSF NSO.
Additional Credits: Jain/Oien/NSF/GONG/NSO/AURA, with contributions by NOAA.

How does the Sun transfer energy to its super-heated outer atmosphere? ☀️

A new study from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) National Solar Observatory (NSO) leverages high-resolution data from the NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope and machine learning to map the thermodynamics of the solar chromosphere. By using K-means clustering to bypass traditional computational bottlenecks and dramatically accelerate data processing, researchers have uncovered new details about the temperature, density, and magnetic structures of solar fibrils, bringing us one step closer to solving a long-standing astrophysical mystery.

Read the full story below.

Deep Diving the Sun: How K-Means Clustering is Decoupling Solar Dynamics - NSO - National Solar Observatory Discover how machine learning helped researchers map the Sun's chromosphere, revealing new insights into solar fibrils, plasma flows, and energy transport.