Solar Terrestrial Activity Report

Activity chart

Last major update issued on February 11, 2022 at 11:50 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 (February 1, 2022)
Solar cycle Solar cycles 23-25 (February 1, 2022) Historical solar and geomagnetic data charts 1954-2006 (April 5, 2007)
  Cycle 24-25 progress (February 1, 2022) 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 (February 1, 2022) 3rd SSN Workshop, Tucson, 2013
  Comparison of cycles 12-14, 16, 24-25 (February 1, 2022) 4th SSN Workshop, Locarno, 2014
  Solar polar fields vs. solar cycles (August 22, 2021) Cycle 25 spots (final update December 25, 2019)
  Solar cycles 24-25 transition using 365d smoothing Research: Solar Cycle 25 Started on November 17, 2019 with 365 Days Smoothing

Recent activity

The geomagnetic field was quiet to minor storm on February 10 under the influence of a relatively low speed CME. The high latitude magnetometer at Andenes recorded quiet to major storm levels.

Solar flux density measured at 20h UT on 2.8 GHz was 118.0 - increasing 7.8 over the previous solar rotation. (Centered 1 year average SF at 1 AU - 183 days ago: 85.45). The Potsdam WDC planetary A index was 22 (STAR Ap - based on the mean of three hour interval ap indices: 22.1). Three hour interval K indices: 33223554 (planetary), 23223543 (Boulder), 42222566 (Andenes).

The background x-ray flux is at the class B4 level (GOES 16).

At the time of counting spots (see image time), spots were observed in 13 active regions using 2K resolution (SN: 204) and in 9 active regions using 1K resolution (SN: 129) SDO/HMI images.

Region 12939 [S16W71] decayed slowly and quietly.
Region 12940 [N17W69] decayed fairly quickly. C1 flares: C1.2 @ 06:30 UT
Region 12941 [N24W11] decayed slowly losing many small spots. C1 flares: C1.0 @ 09:22, C1.0 at 09:52 UT.
Region 12943 [S18E14] reemerged with tiny spots.
New region 12944 [S25W70] was first observed with spots on January 30 and was numbered by SWPC 11 days later as new flux emerged.

Spotted regions not observed (or interpreted differently) by SWPC:
S7338 [S23W48] reemerged with tiny spots.
S7344 [S20W15] was quiet and stable.
S7345 [S22E43] reemerged with tiny spots.
New region S7346 [S20W21] emerged with several spots.
New region S7347 [S16W59] emerged with tiny spots.
New region S7348 [S04E08] emerged with a tiny spot. This is probably an SC24 spot.
New region S7349 [S09E79] rotated into view with a few spots.
New region S7350 [N20E46] was observed with a tiny spots in an old plage area.
New region S7351 [N20E77] rotated into view with a tiny spot.

C2+ flares:

Magnitude Peak time (UT) Location Source Recorded by Comment
C3.0 02:08 N18W56 12940 GOES16  
C4.0 04:38 N21W05 12941 GOES16  

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs)

February 8-10: 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]

A very well defined recurrent southern hemisphere coronal hole (CH1060) rotated across the central meridian on February 10. A small northern hemisphere coronal hole (CH1061) will become Earth facing on February 11.

Propagation

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

Forecast

The geomagnetic field is expected to be quiet to active on February 11 due to CME effects, quiet to unsettled on February 12 and quiet to minor storm on February 13-14 due to effects from CH1060 and CH1061.

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 colored red.

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
12939 2022.01.29
2022.01.30
3 3 2 S17W70 0160 CSO HSX

location: S16W71

12940 2022.01.30
2022.01.30
6 4 3 N16W71 0130 DAO CRO location: N17W69

area: 0040

12944 2022.01.30
2022.02.10
1 7 4 S26W70 0020 HRX CRO area: 0040
12941 2022.02.02
2022.02.03
28 34 17 N24W15 0370 EKI FAO

location: N24W11

area: 0270

S7338 2022.02.04   3 2 S23W48 0007   BXO    
S7339 2022.02.04       N11W47            
S7342 2022.02.05       N00W58           probably SC24
12943 2022.02.06
2022.02.08
  2 1 S18E21 0004   BXO location: S18E14
S7344 2022.02.08       S20W28          
S7345 2022.02.08   2   S22E43 0003   BXO  
S7346 2022.02.10   11 7 S20W21 0050   DRI    
S7347 2022.02.10   3   S16W59 0004   BXO    
S7348 2022.02.10   1 1 S04E08 0003   AXX   maybe SC24 group
S7349 2022.02.10   2 2 S09E79 0030   CRO    
S7351 2022.02.10   1   N20E77 0001   AXX    
Total spot count: 38 73 39  
Sunspot number: 78 203 129  (total spot count + 10 * number of spotted regions)
Weighted SN: 61 95 61  (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): 86 112 103  

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 (SC24 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
2020.07 69.5 71.8 6.1 9.0 (+1.1) 4.28
2020.08 71.6 73.4 7.5 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 17.3 (+2.0) 4.39
2021.02 74.3 72.4 8.2 19.0 (+1.7) 9.50
2021.03 76.0 75.2 17.2 21.7 (+2.7) 10.17
2021.04 75.9 76.4 24.5 24.8 (+3.1) 8.40
2021.05 75.3 77.1 21.2 25.8 (+1.0) 6.50
2021.06 79.4 81.8 25.0 27.7 (+1.9) 5.52
2021.07 81.0 83.6 34.3 31.4 (+3.7) 5.51
2021.08 77.7 79.7 22.0 (36.2 projected, +4.8) 6.19
2021.09 87.0 88.2 51.3 (42.3 projected, +6.1) 6.33
2021.10 88.9 88.3 38.1 (46.7 projected, +4.4) 7.38
2021.11 86.2 84.4 35.0 (51.3 projected, +4.6) 9.83
2021.12 103.0 99.8 67.6 (57.2 projected, +5.9) 6.40
2022.01 103.8 100.5 54.0 (60.8 projected, +3.6) 8.92
2022.02 125.5 (1)   29.5 (2A) / 82.5 (2B) / 85.0 (2C) (65.5 projected, +4.7) (13.6)
2022.03       (71.0 projected, +5.5)  
2022.04       (76.1 projected, +5.1)  
2022.05       (82.6 projected, +6.5)  
2022.06       (88.4 projected, +5.9)  
2022.07       (95.7 projected, +7.3)  

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

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.