YEAR 2013: MAXIMUM OF SOLAR ACTIVITY

From the data collected in the last 200 years it is known that the solar maxima follow a cycle of approximately 11 years (see figure). Solar activity is defined by the number of sunspots detected on the surface of the Sun. As we approach the maximum, the number of sunspots increases, as shown in the upper panel. Additionally, Sun’s magnetic field changes polarity. Observational data tell us that this is just happening! This is a clear sign that the 24th period of solar activity will peak sometime before the end of 2013.

During the solar maxima the intensity of the solar wind increases, leading to an increase of flux of elementary particles arriving at Earth. These electrically charged particles are channeled towards the magnetic poles by the Earth’s magnetic field, where they interact with the Earth’s atmosphere, causing the Aurora Borealis (northern hemisphere) and the Aurora Australis (southern hemisphere). The best zone to observe the phenomena is in a circle around the magnetic North Pole, in particular between 60 and 70 degrees North. However the magnetic pole does not coincide with the geographic North Pole. Actually it moves over time. It is currently located off the coast of the Canadian island of Ellef Ringnes, meaning that southern Greenland is an excellent place to observe auroras.

AURORAS

Auroras are classified as diffuse or discrete. The latter type can consist of luminous curtains which change quickly and have several color tones (see the photo). The light emission takes place in the atmosphere at altitudes between 100 and 400 km and it is a consequence of the collision of the solar wind (essentially electrons) with atoms of oxygen (greenish tones) or nitrogen molecules (reddish tones).

As mentioned, this wonderful celestial spectacle only takes place in regions not to far from the North and the South Pole. However the show is worth a trip at least once in a lifetime! But if you can’t, Shelios and GLORIA are offering you a chance to watch the show via Internet at live.gloria-project.eu (see details below).

EXPEDITION LOCATION

The Shelios 2013 expedition is promoted by the scientific-cultural association Shelios and is coordinated by its president Dr. Miquel Serra-Ricart, Astronomer of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands. The main objective of the expedition will be the observation of the aurora borealis from the South of Greenland at an epoch close to the maximum of the solar activity. More information available at shelios.com. A collection of images from the past expeditions is available here.

BROADCASTING

There will be a daily broadcast between 24 and 29 August 2013 from the surroundings of the Qaleraliq glacier (longitude=46.6791W; latitude=60.9896N) and two additional places located in the south of Greenland (see map above). The live broadcast will be between 00:30 to 1:30 UT (2:30 – 3:30 CEST; where UT = Universal Time and CEST = Central European Summer Time); late in the night in Europe. Note that weather conditions could cause changes in the schedule. The event broadcast will include:

Live Connection

Live footage will be broadcast from a black and white camera each evening, providing video sequences showing the movements of the aurora. It can be watched on the GLORIA live website live.gloria-project.eu and the main collaborator sky-live.tv.

One-Minute Time-Lapse

Color still images will be obtained each minute and posted to the mentioned website to create a time-lapse animation of the aurora. Two identical Canon 5D Mark II cameras will be used. The observing sites will be separated by a distance of at least 1 km (maximum 50 km) in order to be able to calculate the height of the aurora using the parallax method. In fact these images will be accessible from the web in order to perform the proposed educational activity.

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY

Using the collected aurora images, an educational activity is proposed to be carried out:

Calculation of aurora altitude from images using color and parallax methods.

See the activity reference document here.

LINKS

During the broadcasts we will have daily information on the solar activity through the following nodes:

Latest solar images in different wavelengths from the SOHO Satellite (international cooperation between the ESA and NASA space agencies): http://sohowww.estec.esa.nl/data/realtime-images.html

Solar activity and forecasts:

Europe: http://sidc.oma.be/index.php3

United States: http://www.sec.noaa.gov/SWN/

SolarCycle24 website: solarcycle24.com

Download the PDF of the event