Space Weather News for Nov. 3, 201
http://spaceweather.com

HUGE SUNSPOT: One of the biggest sunspot groups in many years has just emerged over the sun's eastern limb. The sunspot's magnetic canopy is crackling with M-class (medium-sized) solar flares and seems poised to launch even stronger X-class eruptions. The sunspot, named AR1339, is not yet directly facing Earth but it will be turning toward our planet in the days ahead. Check http://spaceweather.com for images of the behemoth and updates.


MAGNIFICENT SUNSPOT: One of the largest sunspots in years is rotating over the sun's northeastern limb. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory took this picture of AR1339 during the early hours of Nov. 3rd:
Measuring some 40,000 km wide and at least twice that in length, the sprawling sunspot group is an easy target for backyard solar telescopes. Two or three of the sunspot's dark cores are wider than Earth itself.
Naturally, such a large sunspot has potential for strong flares. NOAA forecasters estimate a 50% chance of M-class solar flares during the next 24 hours. One such eruption has already occured: An M4-flare at 2200 UT on Nov. 2nd produced a bright flash of extreme UV radiation (SDO movie) and hurled a coronal mass ejection (CME) into space. The CME is not heading our way. Future CMEs could have greater effect as AR1339 turns toward Earth in the days ahead. Solar flare alerts: text, voice.

SUNSPOT TELESCOPE: Sunspot AR1339 looks magnificent when viewed through Explore Scientific's White Light Solar Observing System. This safely-filtered telescope is designed for high-quality imaging of sunspots and it is now available in the Space Weather Store: http://www.shopspaceweather.com/