the most recent 48 hours of solar activity

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tigger59

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Has any one else noticed the ( object, objects ), moving from lower left and uper left side of the clip, toward the right side of the screen, in the space.com clip of ( the most recent 48 hours of solar activity )??? If not check it out and let me know what you might think it is..
 
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silylene old

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There is a very big sunspot, easy to see with the naked eye right now. It's to the right of the center. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature" align="center"><em><font color="#0000ff">- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -</font></em> </div><div class="Discussion_UserSignature" align="center"><font color="#0000ff"><em>I really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function.</em></font> </div> </div>
 
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silylene old

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Of course, you don't stare at the sun unless you have a solar filter. Or use pinhole projection. I am assuming that this is obvious to the people who read this board. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature" align="center"><em><font color="#0000ff">- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -</font></em> </div><div class="Discussion_UserSignature" align="center"><font color="#0000ff"><em>I really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function.</em></font> </div> </div>
 
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odysseus145

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The people at godlikeproductions are going to have fun with this! <img src="/images/icons/cool.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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CalliArcale

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Yeah, they're fringy. They host a lot of claims about Planet X approaching the Earth, and I think the implication is that they might claim that this sunspot group is really a big rogue planet about to kill us all.<br /><br />I observed this big sunspot group a couple of days ago with my telescope, using a full-apeture solar filter. It was gorgeous. I could even make out the fringy edges of it. My hubby came and looked too, and he thought it was pretty neat.<br /><br />BTW, you can observe the sun with the naked eye without going blind, but most people are afraid to suggest it, because doing so unwisely can indeed lead to vision loss. The best time is at sunrise or sunset when the air is very hazy. Be cautious, though. In any event, it's very uncomfortable and you won't get a very good look that way. Using proper solar observing techniques will not only safeguard your vision, but will also give you a much more enjoyable and productive observing experience. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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igorsboss

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Eyesight is far more important than sunspots. Don't take risks with your eyes. It really isn't worth it. If you're blind, and another, bigger, sunspot comes along later, you'll be sure to miss out.<br /><br />I once heard a suggestion from a photographer - while he was teaching a photography class - that people take sunset photos with the sun actually in the frame. Bad idea. Very very bad idea. Wait until the sun goes down, folks!<br /><br />Ever cook an ant with a magnifying glass? If you look through your telescope, camera, or binoculars directly at the sun, that's what you'll be doing to your eyes. You can even cook your big expensive telescope if you point at the sun.<br /><br />Once you learn to take all those warnings very very very seriously, you can begin to investigate the SAFE ways for observing the sun.<br /><br />** The safest, highest-resolution way to observe the sun is over the web. **<br /><br />If you use solar filters, know their limitations.<br /><br />If you are using a solar filter in combination with any kind of magnifying optics, do this:<br />1) Be sure the solar filter completely covers the objective, and is absolutely secure, so it won't fall off.<br /><br />2) Prior to attaching any solar filter, examine the entire filter for any pinholes that could let light through. Blot out any pinholes you find with a black sharpie marker.<br /><br />3) Don't take my word for it. Study for yourself.<br /><br />Ok, now that I've said all that, I'd like to share my favorite portable solar observatory. I placed a solar filter on a pair of image-stabilized 15x45 Canon binoculars. With this setup, I can look see sunspots directly through handheld binoculars.<br /><br />THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS. DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME! ONLY A MAD SCIENTIST WOULD DO SUCH A CRAZY THING! Right, Igor? Yesss, bosss.<br /><br />One thing I learned from this is that if you're looking at the sun through solar-filtered binoculars, that it is very important to CLOSE YOUR EYES BEFORE TAKING T
 
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robnissen

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"BTW, you can observe the sun with the naked eye without going blind, but most people are afraid to suggest it, because doing so unwisely can indeed lead to vision loss. The best time is at sunrise or sunset when the air is very hazy."<br /><br />That is true, in fact, sunspots were originally discovered by people looking directly at the sun. But it is VERY difficult, I tried to see the Venus transit at sunrise by looking directly at the sun, but I could not pick it out. It was easy though, when I looked through old black and white negatives. <br /><br />But what the heck, maybe at sunset tonight, I will see if I can pick out the sunspots by looking directly at the sun. I doubt I will be successful though, because even at sunset, I will only look for a couple seconds before turning away.
 
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robnissen

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"Ever cook an ant with a magnifying glass? If you look through your telescope, camera, or binoculars directly at the sun, that's what you'll be doing to your eyes. You can even cook your big expensive telescope if you point at the sun."<br /><br />Noone is suggesting to ever look directly at the sun through any viewing device that concentrates light, even at sunrise or sunset. But it is true that at sunrise and sunset you can safely look directly at the sun for a few seconds, but NOT through binoculars, telescopes, etc.
 
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CalliArcale

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Here's a fascinating article that gets into the real nitty-gritty of eye safety and whether or not you can go blind looking at the sun: Galileo, solar observing, and eye safety. Not only does it debunk the old myth that Galileo went blind from discovering sunspots (his vision loss was actually due to more typical causes -- cataracts and glaucoma associated with age; he didn't go blind until he was 72). It's very interesting, especially when it explains precisely how damage to the eye <i>can</i> occur. In particular, it explains why it is not safe to observe solar eclipses directly except at totality -- basically, your normal mechanisms for preventing eye damage are fooled by the eclipsed sun. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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CalliArcale

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And you can see it a whole lot better. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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igorsboss

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<font color="yellow">Noone is suggesting to ever look directly at the sun through any viewing device that concentrates light</font><br /><br />I wanted to share <font color="blue">(brag)</font>about my neat-o solar filtered binoculars. However, I thought it would have been irresponsible of me to talk about it without prefacing my remarks with some dire warnings.
 
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robnissen

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Thanks for the interesting link on viewing the sun directly. I guess it turns out that you can actually use binoculars to look directly at the sun right at sunrise and sunset. But even though the article is persuasive, that still strikes me as risky. I will occasionally look directly at the sun at sunrise and sunset, but I think I will pass on the binoculars.
 
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