GONG Farside Helioseismic Mapping Project: Release of Upgraded Data Products

 NISP has released an upgraded version of the data products generated by the improved farside helioseismic mapping pipeline (GONG Farside Maps), which utilizes full disk GONG Dopplergrams This upgradation incorporates substantial improvement to the pipeline, addressing long standing issues and implementing new strategies throughout the workflow. Several new data products are now available to better serve the broader community.

Data products from the previous pipeline (hereafter the Legacy pipeline) will continue to be produced through the end of this calendar year to support direct comparison. All products are accessible through the link above as well as on the GONG data download page.

The figure below compares the seismic signatures of magnetic activity on the far side of the Sun as computed using the Legacy pipeline (top panel) and the upgraded pipeline (bottom panel). In the Legacy pipeline, regions of strong magnetic field appear as dark areas. In contrast, the upgraded pipeline provides more detailed information: the farside maps are shown with a dark background, high magnetic field regions appear as bright features, and the frontside magnetograms are displayed in grayscale. The identified farside active regions and their probabilities of appearing on the East limb are marked by circles in both versions of the pipeline.

A strong active region may rotate into Earth view on June 12–13, 2026

 

Helioseismic mapping of the Sun’s far (invisible) hemisphere indicates the presence of a strong active region that may rotate into Earth view around late June 12. This active region is marked by a circle with 100% probability. The figure below shows its Carrington‑longitude location, highlighted by the yellow dashed line in three maps separated by seven days: June 10 (top), June 3 (middle) and May 27 (bottom).  The dark portions of each map represent the far hemisphere, while the grayscale corresponds to the front side. The bright features on the far side mark active regions that cannot be observed directly from Earth.

A careful analysis shows that the active region of interest was either in a very early stage of development when this portion of the Sun was on the front side, or it had not yet evolved. It is not clearly visible in the bottom map. Although there was an active region at a similar longitude, its latitude differs by about 10 degrees. The middle map shows only a weak farside signature, but the region becomes clearly visible in the top map, with strong helioseismic signals and a 100% probability of appearing on the front side. The maps from June 3 to June 10 indicate that the region has evolved over time and strengthened significantly in the past couple of days. Strong active regions of this kind tend to enhance magnetic activity and may trigger severe space‑weather events. 

It is worth noting that several other active regions have rotated to the farside and are currently progressing through their farside transit.  

Solar Activity Report: June 1 - 7, 2026

Solar activity fluctuated from low to high and then returned to low levels during the reporting period. The quietest day was June 1, marked by isolated low‑intensity C‑class flares; the strongest event that day was a C1.5 flare from active region 14449 in the southwest portion of the solar disk. Activity increased to moderate levels with frequent C‑class flares and three M‑class events: M3.3 and M1.3 flares from active region 14455 in the northern hemisphere, and an M1.2 flare from active region 14461 near the southeast limb.

Activity rose further on June 3, reaching high levels when active region 14455 produced three major flares - M9.3, M7.7, and the week’s strongest event, an X1.0 flare. Following this peak, activity declined, with the strongest events being a C2.6 flare on June 4 and a C4.7 flare on June 5. Activity briefly returned to moderate levels on June 6 with an M1.8 flare from active region 14461. By June 7, conditions had settled back to low levels with only low‑intensity C‑class flares.

Several of the M‑ and X‑class flares were associated with coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that produced minor to moderate geomagnetic activity.

GONG/CT - Site Update

 The CT GONG shelter painting project was completed this week. The project included repairs and painting of the roof and perimeter fence. Many thanks to the NSF NOIRLab staff at CTIO for getting the project finished before the snowfall starts. 

Photos: Esteban Parkes / NSF NOIRLab CTIO

Large solar flares and CME eruption

On 3 June 2026, Active region 14455 produced several major (M- and X-class) flares and eruptions. Attached video shows solar activity during this period as observed by GONG/El Teide (Canary Islands). A major flare of M7.7 class peaked at about 7:00 UT and another flare of X1.0 class peaked at about 11:28 UT. Flares of this class are typically associated with the coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and in fact, there is an idication of the erupting material during the first flare (see dark filamentary structures appearing shortly after the flare brightenning). LASCO C3 coronagraph shows CME signatures for both events.

NSO/Kitt Peak Fourier Transform Spectrometer

 

https://noirlab.edu/public/images/noao-sun/

The Fourier Transform Spectrometer  (FTS) was operating at NSO's McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope from early 1970 (1971-1976) till 2001. In 2012, it was relocated to Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA. The FTS data were used for solar and atmospheric physics research, and to develop several high-spectral resolution atlases of solar spectra: Flux from 296 to 1300 nm; Photosphere from 357 to 740.5 nm; Photosphere from 735 to 1123 nm; Infrared from 1100 to 5400 nm; Sunspot from 8100 to 21,000 nm plus photosphere from 16,000 to 22,000 nm; Sunspot umbra from 664.2 to 1123 nm; Sunspot umbra from 1160 to 5100 nm.

Recently, Mr. John Williams developed an interface for displaying solar spectra and extracting data from different FTS atlases. The interface can be accessed via fts.terrazoom.com.

Solar Activity Report: May 25 - 31, 2026

 

During the past week, solar activity was predominantly low, characterized by low‑intensity C‑class flares. The most significant event was an M1.1 flare on 29 May originating from Active Region 14455 in the northeast quadrant. All remaining activity consisted of low C‑class flares, and no Earth‑directed CMEs were identified.