AR 3664: 庞大的太阳黑子群

AR 3664: Giant Sunspot Group
Image Credit & Copyright: Franco Fantasia & Guiseppe Conzo (Gruppo Astrofili Palidoro)

Explanation: Right now, one of the largest sunspot groups in recent history is crossing the Sun. Active Region 3664 is not only big — it’s violent, throwing off clouds of particles into the Solar System. Some of these CMEs are already impacting the Earth, and others might follow. At the extreme, these solar storms could cause some Earth-orbiting satellites to malfunction, the Earth’s atmosphere to slightly distort, and electrical power grids to surge. When impacting Earth’s upper atmosphere, these particles can produce beautiful auroras, with some auroras already being reported unusually far south. Pictured here, AR3664 and its dark sunspots were captured yesterday in visible light from Rome, Italy. The AR3664 sunspot group is so large that it is visible just with glasses designed to view last month’s total solar eclipse. This weekend, skygazing enthusiasts will be keenly watching the night skies all over the globe for bright and unusual auroras.

Gallery: Active Region 6443 on the Sun

Tomorrow’s picture: active sky

AR 3664: 庞大的太阳黑子群
影像提供与版权: Franco Fantasia & Guiseppe Conzo (Gruppo Astrofili Palidoro)

说明: 现在，近期历史上最大群的太阳黑子之一正在横越太阳。活跃区3664不仅庞大，而且极为活跃，不断向太阳系喷发出大团的粒子云。其中的部分日冕物质抛射已经撞到了地球，而且其他的抛射物质还可能会来。在最严重的情况下，这些太阳风暴可能会导致地球轨道卫星发生故障、地球大气层略微变形、以及电力系统出现突波/浪涌。当这些粒子冲撞地球的高层大气时，它们会产生美丽的极光，而一些近赤道的极南地区已有极光目睹报导。这张摄于意大利罗马的可见光影像，就记录了AR3664及其黝黑的太阳黑子。太阳黑子群AR3664是如此的庞大，甚至使用上个月用来观赏日全食的眼镜就能看见。这个周末，全球各地的天文爱好者都会热切的观察夜空，期待能看到明亮及不寻常的极光。

画廊: 太阳上的活跃区6443

明日的图片: active sky

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