Imaging in BaII D2 en MgI B2

How cool is this. I imaged the Barium ion (BaII D2) line at 4554A. I did not expect anything, but it did, with some structure over the entire sun's disk. I seached more in the literature and found that the line is representing the low chromosphere, the same as the MgIb2 line. Thus I imaged the MgIb2 line and compared with the BaII line. Observation: more details in the sunspot, structure is same between Ba and Mg. Interesting is that Ba structure is dark, while the one for Mg is lighter.

According to Olshevsky et al. (2008) and Sütterlin et al. (2001), the core of this line forms at about 700km.

Via a FB post I got feedback from Varadi Nagy Pal on more metal elements which show structure and even faint prominences. For more information see his blog https://csillagtura.ro/

He mentiones Fe, Ni, Sr of which Sol'Ex images are made. I will try to locate them using JSolex Spectrum analyzer. 

Sunspot AR4079 in white light and Barium Ion line

 On May 1 and 2 I was able to image the big sunspot AR4079. One image was made using white light (OIII, IR/UV cut), the other one in Barium II D2 line using my Sol'Ex.

The structure in BaII D2 is clearly visible. The image is not that sharp as this is a crop from an entire sundisk.

Rotation of the Sun - H-Alpha with Sol'Ex

The sun was imaged from April 26 till May 2nd. Every day one picture with Sol'Ex in H-alpha.

What can we see and learn :

- the Sun rotates

- large structures hold for days

Setting:

TLAPO80/480 with Sol'Ex Pro 2nd Gen Slit and ASI678MM on AZEQ6

Herschel Wedge

Software: Sharpcap, Inti, CS4

ATT Essen.. one week to go!

On Saturday, May 10, 2025, the 40th "Astronomy and Technology Meeting" (ATT) will take place in Essen. The ATT (Astronomie- und Techniktreff) is a trade fair for amateur astronomers and people of all ages interested in astronomy. It is the largest event of its kind in Europe. Here you can admire the latest telescopes and all kinds of accessories, as well as used and do-it-yourself instruments, and exchange experiences with manufacturers and experienced amateurs.

This year some new exhibitors; I'm looking forward to see  ZWO Astro and Proxisky beside the wellknown APP, Bresser, Baader, Celestron, Lunt, Teleskop-Service, Vixen, Explore Scientific, ...

The Sun seen in different wavelengths using Sol'Ex

Using my Sol'Ex I'm able to observe the Sun in different wavelengths. I made a graphics showing my current observations. All observations imaged on May 1, 2025

Setting

TLAPO80/480, Sol'Ex Pro 2nd Gen slit and ASI678MM

Herschel wedge

AZEQ6

Software: Sharpcap, Inti, J'Solex, CS4

Sunspot AR4079

Sunspot AR4079 was imaged this midday with good transparency and moderate seeing. The size is about 1070MH and thus visible with the naked eye (using an eclipse glasses ofcourse).

Setting: TAL200K, ASI290MM with barlow x2

Filters: ND3.8 solar filter, OIII and IR/UV cut filter

Software : Sharpcap, AstroSurface, CS4

The Sun in MgIb2, Alpha and Beta