Solar Data Archive – Tracking the Sun’s Activity Over Time
Project Origins
At the beginning of 2024, the idea took shape to photograph the Sun over multiple consecutive days and create animations to capture the rotation and shifting patterns of sunspots. What began as a simple experiment quickly developed into a dedicated, ongoing project aimed at documenting the daily evolution of sunspots throughout the current solar maximum.
The Sun’s Dynamic Cycle
The Sun is currently in a particularly active phase of its 11-year solar cycle, presenting unique opportunities to witness the dynamic changes in both the quantity and distribution of sunspots. This archive was created not just for personal curiosity, but to provide enthusiasts, researchers, and anyone interested in solar science with a resource to observe and study these phenomena firsthand.
Evolving the Archive: From Images to Data
As the project advanced over the months, its scope evolved beyond basic solar imaging. In its earliest days, some key observation data—such as local weather and “seeing” (turbulence-related image quality)—was not recorded consistently. Likewise, detailed sunspot counting and documentation of the Wolf relative number were initially not part of the routine.
Responding to the scientific potential and community interest, the project has since introduced systematic protocols: every photo is now accompanied by precise records of seeing conditions, sky weather, sunspot counts, and careful calculation of the Wolf number, greatly increasing the archive’s scientific value.
Archive Coverage and Observational Methods
It’s important to note that while the archive is fully comprehensive starting from April 2024, unavoidable gaps remain in the earliest weeks, and occasional observations may still be impacted by adverse winter weather.
Each image is captured with a DSLR camera equipped with a 300mm telephoto lens and a dedicated solar filter.
Exploring Solar Dynamics Over Time
By evolving from basic time-lapse photography into a systematic sunspot and solar data program, this archive empowers visitors to trace the Sun’s activity over time and gain insights into the broader solar cycles and sunspot phenomena that shape our understanding of space weather and its effects on Earth.