Sun news: One sunspot now, more on the way?

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Sun news November 1: One sunspot now, more on the way?

(11 UTC October 31 – 11 UTC November 1)

Today’s top story: This morning, the Earth-facing disk of our sun shows just one numbered sunspot region. It’s a lull near solar maximum, the peak of the sun’s 11-year cycle, reached in 2024. But don’t get too comfy. Bright activity is bubbling up on the sun’s northeast limb, the side just now rotating into view. And the far-side fireworks we’ve watched in recent days continue with multiple coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and towering prominences, likely from the regions we knew as AR4246 and AR4248 when they were on the Earth-facing solar disk more than a week ago. A spotless day is still unlikely — we haven’t had one since June 8, 2022 — and new regions might rotate into view soon.

• Flare activity on the near side: Flare activity stayed low but climbed out of the B (weak) range: seven C-class (common) flares were recorded.
• Strongest flare: A C7.1 from an as-yet-unnumbered incoming region on the northeast limb at 20:43 UTC on October 31.
  • Other flares: C1.4 at 12:01 UTC from an unnumbered northeastern region; C3.7 at 16:53 UTC from the same sector; and C2.4 at 23:26 UTC from AR4271.
  • No M-class (moderate) or X-class (strong) flares occurred.
• Sunspot regions: Only one numbered active region, AR4267, sits on the Earth-facing disk.
  • AR4267 is small with a magnetically simple alpha configuration.
  • Three regions numbered yesterday decayed into plage.
• Blasts from the sun? Several CMEs appeared in coronagraph imagery, but they originated on the far side and initial analysis suggests they are not Earth-directed. Two larger CMEs — ~06:45 UTC on October 30 and 01:23 UTC on October 31 from the northeast — remain under modeling for any glancing component. No Earth-bound ejecta identified so far.
• Solar wind:
  • Solar wind speeds eased from ~680 km/s to ~531 km/s by 09:00 UTC. Magnetic field strength was moderate (Bt ~5.7 nT).
  • The Bz component flipped between north and south; the stronger intervals were southward, which favors auroras.
• Earth’s magnetic field: Conditions declined from unsettled to quiet (Kp 4?2). Kp sat a little above 2 at 11:00 UTC.

What’s ahead? Sun–Earth forecast

• Flare activity forecast: Expect low to moderate activity. With an active area peeking over the northeast limb, chances for an M-class flare rise from ~5% yesterday to ~25% today; X-class chances nudge up to ~5%.
• Geomagnetic activity forecast:
  • November 1: Unsettled conditions may persist while the high-speed stream wanes.
  • November 2: A CME launched on October 29 could bring a low-impact, glancing disturbance if it arrives.
  • November 3: Continued CH HSS influence with quiet to active (Kp 2–4) conditions are most likely and a chance of G1 (minor) and a slight chance of G2 (moderate) if any CME glancing blows occur.

Sun news October 31: Ghost action on the edge, auroras under way

(11 UTC October 30 – 11 UTC October 31)

The Earth-facing side of our star stayed mostly quiet. But small prominences and erupting filaments popped up along the solar periphery. And some far-side eruptions rose high enough to clear the limb and become visible from Earth. Yesterday’s huge far-side blast showed dramatically in SOHO/LASCO C2 coronagraph imagery as a partial-halo event. The eruption launched from the northeast and appears aimed generally toward Mercury. Next week could get livelier on our side, as the far-side powerhouses rotate into view. Will the headline-maker – the sunspot region formerly known as AR4246 – return? We’re watching. Meanwhile, a large coronal hole continues streaming fast solar wind toward Earth. Result: a sustained G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm in multiple three-hour intervals, most recently with Kp = 5 at 06:02 UTC today. Did you catch the auroras? Share your photos with our community!

• Flare activity on the near side: Flare activity stayed low with three C-class (common) flares and three B-class (weak) flares (six total).
• Strongest flare: A C1.8 from an as-yet-unnumbered incoming region in the northeast at 02:01 UTC on October 31.
  • Other flares: C1.4 at 12:37 UTC from AR4257; a C1.1 at 8:38 UTC from AR4271; B6.4 at 11:29 UTC from AR4257; B6.5 at 23:44 UTC and B6.8 (time near 23:44–00:00 UTC) from the same incoming northeastern region.
• Sunspot regions: Four numbered active regions dot the Earth-facing disk.
  • All are small and magnetically simple (alpha or beta groups) with little to no flare production.
• Blasts from the sun? Filament-channel activity in the northwest produced coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Modeling is under way to determine whether any component has an Earth-directed (glancing) trajectory.
• Solar wind:
  • Solar wind speeds increased from ~510 km/s to a peak of 793 km/s at 02:40 UTC, then eased to ~680 km/s by 09:00 UTC. Magnetic field strength was moderate (Bt ~7.5 nT).
  • The Bz component was mostly southward (with brief northward flips), favoring auroras.
• Earth’s magnetic field: Conditions ranged from unsettled to active (Kp 3–5). A G1 (Minor) storm occurred from 11–18 UTC on October 30, Kp then dipped to 4, and another G1 interval followed with Kp = 5 at 06:02 UTC on October 31. Kp hovered a bit above 4 at 11:00 UTC.

Sun news October 30: Another monster blast from the far side!

(11 UTC October 29 – 11 UTC October 30)

Boom! The quiet face of the sun we see from Earth stayed calm over the past day. But beyond our direct view – on the sun’s far side — a powerful eruption lit up space early today. While we can’t see the exact culprit, all signs point to the soon-to-return giant active region, what we called AR4246 when we saw it on the sun’s near side. This region was famous for its fiery flares last week. This time, it erupted around 03:45 UTC on October 30 from the sun’s northeast limb, sending a huge cloud of plasma blasting into space (not toward Earth!). Meanwhile, a large coronal hole is still streaming fast solar wind straight at us, stirring Earth’s magnetic field. The result? A G1 (Minor) geomagnetic storm already hit, with Kp = 5 reached at 00:00 UTC today. It’s possible more auroras will dance across high-latitude skies tonight. Keep your eyes to the north and your cameras ready!

• Flare activity on the near side: Flare activity on the Earth-facing sun remained very low over the past day, with three B-class (weak) flares.
  • Strongest flare: It was a weak B5.6 flare from an as-yet-unnumbered incoming region in the northeast at 04:23 UTC on October 29.
  • No M-class (moderate) or X-class (strong) flares occurred.
• Sunspot regions: The Earth-facing solar disk currently shows four numbered active regions.
  • AR4266 showed slight growth.
  • All visible regions are small and magnetically simple (alpha or beta groups) with little to no flare activity.
• Blasts from the sun? The big northeast eruption on the sun’s far side produced a coronal mass ejection (CME). Because it originated on the far side, the ejecta is not directed toward Earth. A filament eruption in the northwest around 00:58 UTC on October 29 produced a small CME; modeling suggests a glancing blow is possible on November 2.
• Solar wind:
  • Solar wind speeds averaged near 500 km/s, peaked at 586 km/s at 04:22 UTC on October 30, then eased to ~508 km/s by 09:00 UTC. Magnetic field strength was moderately strong (Bt ~13 nT).
  • The Bz component flipped between northward and southward through the period, then turned predominantly southward near 06:00 UTC and remained mostly southward through 11:00 UTC — a configuration that favors auroras.
• Earth’s magnetic field: Geomagnetic conditions ranged from unsettled to active (Kp 3–5). A G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm occurred, with Kp reaching 5 at 00:00 UTC on October 30; Kp was a little above 4 at 11:00 UTC.

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Sun news October 29: Auroras possible tonight and tomorrow!

(11 UTC October 28 – 11 UTC October 29)

The sun continues its quiet streak of flare activity after last week’s impressive display. But that large coronal hole – an area of lower density in the sun’s outer atmosphere – is now sending fast solar wind directly toward Earth. These solar winds are disturbing our planet’s magnetic field, and conditions might reach G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm levels – and possible auroras – later today. Activity already reached Kp = 4 around 18 UTC on October 28. The disturbance could persist through tomorrow, possibly reaching G2 (moderate) levels. These conditions are ripe for bringing auroras to high latitudes, a treat for skywatchers, while we await the active regions from the far side of the sun to rotate into view. Clear skies!

• Flare activity: Solar activity remained low over the past day, with one C-class (common) flare and five B-class (weak) flares. So we had six flares in all over the past day.
  • Strongest flare: A C1.6 flare from AR4267 at 16:26 UTC on October 28.
  • No M-class (moderate) or X-class (strong) flares occurred.
• Sunspot regions: The Earth-facing solar disk currently shows six numbered active regions.
  • All visible regions remain small and magnetically simple (alpha or beta groups) and show little to no flare activity.
• Blasts from the sun? No new coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery during the past day.
• Solar wind:
  • Solar wind speeds gradually increased from 320 km/s to a peak of 524 km/s at 6:40 UTC on October 29, then eased to around 490 km/s by 9 UTC. The magnetic field strength was moderate (Bt ~10 nT).
  • The Bz component was strongly southward for several hours, with intermittent northward peaks. Southward Bz conditions favor auroral activity.
  • At the time of this report (11 UTC, October 29), the solar wind has shifted northward.
• Earth’s magnetic field: Earth’s geomagnetic field ranged from quiet-to-active levels (Kp 2–4) during the period. The Kp index reached 4 at 18 UTC on October 28 and was 3 at the time of this report.

Sun news October 28: Auroras tonight?

(11 UTC October 27 – 11 UTC October 28)

A large coronal hole – an area of low density in the sun’s outer atmosphere – is currently releasing a wave of charged solar particles toward Earth. This could combine with a coronal mass ejection (CME) fired from our star last Thursday to disturb Earth’s magnetic field later today. And that could mean beautiful auroras at high latitudes!

• Flare activity: Solar activity dropped to very low levels, with only one B-class (weak) flare recorded over the past day.
  • Strongest and only flare: A B6.8 flare from AR4256 at 14:21 UTC on October 27.
  • No M-class (moderate) or X-class (strong) flares occurred.
• Sunspot regions: Seven active regions are currently visible on the Earth-facing solar disk.
  • A new region appeared suddenly in the southwest quadrant and is now numbered AR4270.
  • All visible regions remain small and magnetically simple (alpha or beta groups) and show no signs of flare activity.
• Blasts from the sun? No new coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery during the past day.
• Solar wind:
  • Solar wind speeds gradually increased from 350 km/s to a peak of 454 km/s at 7 UTC on October 28, accompanied by a moderately strong magnetic field (Bt ~9 nT).
  • The Bz component fluctuated between northward and southward orientations, with stronger southward intervals. Southward Bz conditions favor auroral activity.
  • At the time of this report (11 UTC, October 28), the solar wind remains directed southward, which is favorable for auroras.
• Earth’s magnetic field: Earth’s geomagnetic field remained quiet to unsettled (Kp 0–3) throughout the period, with no storm conditions observed. The Kp index was 3 at the time of this report.

Sun news October 27: Auroras expected in coming days

(11 UTC October 26 – 11 UTC October 27)

Space weather forecasters are keeping an eye on an approaching disturbance. A coronal mass ejection (CME) fired from the sun on October 23 is expected to glance Earth’s magnetic field today, followed by a wave of stronger solar winds from a large coronal hole on October 28–29. These effects could spark geomagnetic storms and auroras over the next few days. Clear skies, aurora chasers!

• Flare activity: Solar activity remains low, with three minor flares detected during the past 24 hours: two B-class (weak) flares and one C (common).
  • Strongest flare: A C1.0 flare from AR4262 at 1:41 UTC on October 27.
  • Other flares included a B7.9 flare from AR4256 at 21:44 UTC on October 26, and a B9.2 flare from AR4266 at 2:12 UTC on October 27.
  • No M-class (moderate) or X-class (strong) flares were observed.
• Sunspot regions: The Earth-facing sun now shows eight active regions.
  • AR4256 in the southwest continues to decay, with its smaller satellite sunspots fading.
  • AR4262 and AR4266 remain relatively stable but simple in structure.
  • One southeastern region showed consolidation of its leading spot but a reduction in intermediate spots, while another near the northern central disk is slowly fading.
  • All other regions remain small and magnetically simple (alpha or beta groups).
• Blasts from the sun? No new CMEs were observed in the past day. The two weak CMEs from October 23–24 continue to be tracked. They are expected to deliver only glancing blows, with stronger effects expected from the coronal hole solar winds arriving later this week.
• Solar wind: The solar wind remained near normal levels.
  • Speeds ranged from 350–450 km/s, with a weak magnetic field (Bt ~6 nT).
  • The Bz component showed no significant southward periods and was mostly northward, limiting geomagnetic disturbances. Southward Bz orientations are more favorable for auroras
  • Solar wind enhancement is expected later today or early tomorrow as the October 23 CME approaches.
• Earth’s magnetic field: Earth’s geomagnetic field was quiet (Kp 0–2) throughout the period, with no storm conditions reported.

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Bottom line: Sun news November 1, 2025: New sunspots emerge on the eastern limb as magnetic loops rise. A new round of solar activity might soon rotate into view!

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