GONG data processing update

Processing of the network-merged daily velocity and magnetogram images, p-mode-coefficient time series, and ring-diagram analysis products for GONG month  316 covering the period 20260524 to 20260628, and the p-mode frequency data products for central GONG month 315 spanning 20260418 to 20260523 is completed and the data products are now available.

How space weather may impact our society

The impact  of solar activity on our technological society was presented in many scientific publications and popular books (see, for example, "Storms from the Sun" by Michael J. Carlowicz and Ramon E. Lopez, Joseph Henry Press, 2003). Reports by the National Research Council (Baker et al. 2009)  and the Lloyd’s Insurance company (Lloyd's 2013) indicated that extreme solar eruptions could cause catastrophic, multi-trillion (!) economic damages, with extended recovery time, not counting human costs (Oughton et al. (2017). The impact would affect a power distribution, transportation, communications, satellite infrastructure, aviation, and global positioning systems (Eastwood et al. 2017).  

See recent CNN article by Kasha Patel and Sam Hart to learn "where a massive solar storm could take down the US power grid". Timely prediction of solar storms and their arrival time to Earth may help mitigating their impact. Observations from GONG stations play important role in such modeling.

Solar Activity Report: August 24 - 30, 2026

Solar activity varied from very low to medium levels during the reporting period. Seven M‑class flares were recorded during the first three days, all originating from active region 14513, followed by a gradual decline to low activity. Peak activity occurred between midday August 24 and midday August 26, including the strongest event of the week - an M6.9 flare on August 25. In addition, several medium-to-high intensity flares were produced during this period. From August 27 onward, the Sun remained quiet, producing only a few low‑intensity C‑class flares through August 30.

Far side helioseismic maps reveal several active regions on the far hemisphere. While most exhibit a low likelihood of appearing on the visible disk, an active region (14507 from the previous Carrington rotation) has a moderate probability of rotating onto the front side. Provided it does not decay, it is expected to return to the Earth‑facing hemisphere on September 4.

Challenges in Access to NISP Data

The data server of the NSO Integrated Synoptic Program (NISP), which provides access to GONG and SOLIS data, has been recently impacted by extensive web scraping activity. Subsequent security measures have greatly improved access; however, there are still periods where the scraping activity slows down significantly the access for all users including the operational space weather and the research communities. We are considering changes to the data access via user registration services, but as a temporary solution, the data center has implemented a IP-based priority access list for selected stakeholders. If you experience issues with accessing NISP data, please contact the data center at nispdata@nso.edu.

One day in the life of a large filament

A large chromospheric filament was present in the solar Northern hemisphere for several days. First, it could be spotted on 24 August 2026, as a prominence above the Eastern limb. Full disk image taken by GONG/Learmonth (Australia) shows this filament (circled) at the start of 30 August 2026. Later that day, the filament became active, and it disappeared. Filament eruptions are commonly associated with the coronal mass ejections (CMEs), but the coronal observations from SOHO/LASCO and GOES-19/CCOR-1 do not show an indication of a CME associated with this filament disappearance.  Nor there is an indication of a coronal blast wave in SDO/AIA observations (called Moreton wave, when observed in the chromosphere), which is another signature of a CME. Attached video shows the disappearance of this filament as observed throughout the day by GONG stations in Learmonth (Australia), Teide (Canary Islands), and Cerro Tololo (Chile). Video starts at about 00:00 UT, and it ends at 16:57 UT.  Transition between the instrument/sites is clear from changes in quality of the video. To reduce the size of video, the cadence is reduced from 1 minute to 4 minutes. GONG images can be accessed via the instrument website.

 

 

 

Small filament eruption, but no CME

GONG CT (Chile) station is back on line, and it produces great data! Starting at about 13:15 UT on 22 August, 2026, a small filament in the south-eastern solar hemisphere begun activating. Attached image shows location of the filament by a blue oval as observed by GONG/CT (Chile).  Coronal images from SDO/AIA (right side of the figure) indicate some restructuring taking place in the location of filament. The filament erupted and disappeared from H-alpha images at about 20:38 UT. Coronagraphic images did not show any sign of a CME associated with this filament eruption. There were two small coronal holes located East and South of the eruption site, and their walls might have deflected the filament eruption. Small chromospheric brightennings briefly observed south of the filament after its eruption may indicate the material falling back to the surface. This evolution is shown in the attached video.

Flare, CME and postfare loops

 

 

 

 

 On 21 Aug. 2026 at 9:09 UT, M1.7 class limb flare started above active region 14507. The flare peaked at 9:57 UT. Bright front of a coronal mass ejection (CME) was observed by LASCO C2 coronagraph at 9:36 UT. As the flare developed, a set of postflare loops was formed above the active region. In classical flare model, the postflare loops are formed  in the tail of rising magnetic flux tube which eventually form the CME. Cartoon published by Cheng et al (2011, DOI: 10.1088/2041-8205/732/2/L25) demonstrates this development. As the reconnection site moves higher in the corona, the postflare loops formed higher and higher. GONG stations in Canary Islands and in Chile recorded the development and evolution of postflare loops. First sign of the reconnection can be seen in GONG/TD images starting at about 10:10 UT. Attached video shows the development and evolution of postflare loops as observed by GONG/TD. Second video shows postflare loops in later phases of CME eruption as observed by GONG/CT.

 

 

GONG data processing update

Processing of the network-merged daily velocity and magnetogram images, p-mode-coefficient time series, and ring-diagram analysis products for GONG month 315 covering the period 20260418 to 20260523,  and  the  p-mode frequency data products for central GONG month 314 spanning 20260313 to 20260417 is completed and the data products are now available.

GONG at CTIO is back on line

GONG at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO, Chile) is back on the Sun and observing! Below is one of the first H-alpha images taken early today (21 Aug 2026).

 

 

What goes up, goes down

On 20 August 2026, C8.0 class flare occurred in active region NOAA 14513. The active region was at about Eastern limb of the Sun. The flare was accompanied by a filament eruption, and a coronal mass ejection (CME).  Flare brightennings start appearing at about 11:24 UT.  Full flare ribbon is seen at 11:34 UT, and the first signs of erupting filament appear a minute later  at 11:35 UT.  CCOR1 observations show bright CME front appearing at about 12:00-12:15 UT. Attached video shows the filament eruption as observed by GONG at Teide (Canary Islands) station.

While most of the filament material leaved the Sun and formed the CME, some material can be seen falling down to the Sun. 

 

Some good news from CTIO

Finally we received good news from CTIO. Their TelOps day crew resumed working on Tololo regularly yesterday, although it will be next week before they have staff staying overnight. NISP team is attempting to restart the GONG operations. The skies over Tololo are beautifully blue (photo is courtesy of S. Heathcote).

 

Update on the status of the CTIO facilities

This is an update on the status of the mountain (CTIO) facilities and the prospects for reopening, which was received from the Director of the Cerro Tololo Observatory.

"Conditions are considerably better than in my last report and we are almost, but not quite, ready to resume regular operations.

After more than 20 days hard work by facilities operations  staff and contractors the access road has been repaired sufficiently to allow safe access by staff and, importantly, by heavy vehicles.  TelOps staff began recovery and planned engineering work at the Blanco telescope last Monday and teams from SOAR, Gemini and Rubin were able to get to Pachon for initial inspections last Friday.  We were also able to resupply the generators on Tololo last Friday and trucked water from a new provisional well to refill the water tanks this Monday.  You can find more information and pictures of the recovery work here 

Because a new storm front was forecast to bring rain and snow again today and continue over the weekend we again suspended work on the mountain today for safety reasons. However, so far the front has been much weaker than predicted so we may be able to resume work tomorrow.  FacOps have been able to provide hot lunches for the work crews this week and plans to resume full food and lodging services next week This will allow us to return to something more like normality with the full day crew going to the mountain each day and some staff staying overnight by the middle of next week.

So I hope that it will be possible to begin powering up and resuming operation of your telescopes on Tololo by the end of next week."

Total Solar Eclipse as observed at Ebro Observatory

On 11-12 August 2026, the IAU Working Group on Coordination of Synoptic Observations of the Sun and the International Space Weather Action Team on Data sets of historical observations of solar and geomagnetic activity (S1-03) held a joint workshop on "Synoptic ground-based solar observations for space weather and space climate". The workshop took place at the Ebro Observatory and included presentations about preservation of historical data, use of historical data for modern scientific research, current state of observational facilities in different countries, and plans for future networks of synoptic observations (ngGONG and SOLARNET/SPRING). The workshop was attended by scientists from Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, Spain, Switzerland, and USA. On the last day, the workshop was visited by Dr.  Núria Montserrat, Minister for Research and Universities of the Catalan Government and Ellen S. Baker, a former NASA astronaut. Photo 1 shows (left to righth) Dr. Juan José Curto, Dr.  Montserrat, and Ms. Baker greeting the workshop participants. Their visit was related to the activities organized by the Observatory with respect to public viewing of the total solar eclipse.

 

The event included several public lectures about the history of Ebro Observatory, space flights from the perspective of former Spanish and US astronauts, astronomy studies of exoplanets, and space weather effects on Earth (photo 2). Before and during the eclipse, the observatory personnel was taking measurements of the atmospheric properties (wind, temperature) using small weather balloons (photo 3). Children were invited to draw pictures of solar atmosphere and stellar nebula (photo 4). 

 

Total solar eclipse took place at the end of the day during the sunset (see photos 5 and 6). After the dark, the evening concluded by public viewing of Perseids meteor shower.

 

Last image (photo 7) shows partial solar eclipse as observed by GONG at Teide station on Canary Islands. 

 

Getting ready for the eclipse?

The last total solar eclipse in Spain happened on August 30, 1905 (121 years ago!) and so, perhaps it is not surprising that the signs of this year eclipse (August 12, 2026) are everywhere. Would you like to try "Eclipse 2026" ice cream (photos 1-2)? Or perhaps, come to a roof-top at a hotel in Barcelona (photo 3). Eclipse creme brulee anyone (photo 4)? Photos 5-6 show eclipse signs for the public viewing event at the Ebro Observatory (Observatori de l’Ebre) in Tortosa, Catalonia.

 

GONG CT status update from 10 Aug. 2026

Local team at CTIO informed us that the UPS and workstation were on at GONG. NSO engineering team was able to access GONG station remotely. Data acquisition was started and verified. The PMFLAG has been turned off and all looks good.  The turret is still covered and the roll/pitch amplifiers remain off. The weather forecast for the next days is not good. Depending on the weather, the CTIO  team will return to the summit on Friday (8/14) or Monday (8/17). At that time, we could attempt restarting GONG observations.

Solar total eclipse is in one week

 We are 1 week from totality!

The Predictive Science Inc. was running their data-assimilative model in near real time and updating the prediction for over 15 days now.  Attached image shows the current prediction for a locations near Palencia, Spain. For more up-to-date predictions, see https://eclipse.predsci.com

 

GONG CTIO Status, 5 Aug. 2026

On 5 Aug., CTIO team stopped by GONG station and manually powered up GONG UPS. The UPS was restarted and most of the equipment started up. GONG no longer appears to be in a shutdown mode. This should enable the NSO team to remotely login to GONG. Attached are two photos of GONG from outside. There are no visible damages to the shelter or the instrument. For now, we will keep turret covered by the bag in case of bad weather.

 

Chile Storm Recovery Update: 3 August

Recovery efforts continue at NOIRLab's Chilean facilities following July’s historic winter storm. After fresh rain and snow paused recovery work late last week, crews returned to the mountains over the weekend. Today, teams are evaluating whether it is possible to reach the summit of Cerro Pachón.

Heavy equipment crews are actively clearing snow and repairing access roads. The primary bottleneck remains extensive road damage between the Control Puerta and the El Quisco junction, including a large drop-off at kilometer 14 requiring a temporary bypass. It currently takes a three-hour drive to reach the summits.

 

While commercial power has been restored to Cerro Tololo, the service is unreliable, and today the team switched back to generators. Cerro Pachón also relies on generators due to severe power infrastructure damage. To conserve fuel, generators will be turned off at the end of each day, until full-sized delivery trucks can reach the summit. Teams are currently bringing up small diesel loads in pickup trucks. The status of the Cerro Tololo water pump house and distribution system is still under investigation.

 

Workers at the Cerro Pachón hotel area following a winter storm in July 2026

Snow covers vehicles at the Cerro Pachón hotel area following a winter storm in July 2026.

The top of NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory is seen in the distance following a winter storm in July 2026. 

Damage on the road to Cerro Pachón and Cerro Tololo following a winter storm in July 2026.

 

Damage on the road to Cerro Pachón and Cerro Tololo following a winter storm in July 2026.

Sculpture of the Laocoön and solar eclipses

 The Uffizi Gallery (Florence, Italy),  one of the largest and best-known museums in the world, holds a collection of priceless works from the period of the Italian Renaissance. One of these is the Laocoön sculpture by Baccio Bandinelli (Florence 1493-1560). 

The sculpture depicts the Trojan priest and his sons crushed by sea serpent sent by Poseidon to stop him from revealing the deception of the Trojan horse devised by Odysseus to help the Greek army enter the city of Troy. One can find more about the history of this sculpture at the Uffizi web site. 

The stature rests on its original pedestal. Two sides of this pedestal show identical reliefs, which caught the eye of this astronomer. What the reliefs show is the geometry of total solar eclipse. Two half-spheres represent Sun (surrounded by spiky corona) and the Moon. Two lines connecting the edges of the Sun and Moon mark the outer boundary of umbra, the darkest part of shadow cast by Moon blocking the sunlight. Two other lines show angles at which the lunar disk would be seen from each side of umbra.

By the way, next solar total eclipse will take place on 12 August 2026. It starts in Greenland, passes over North Atlantic Ocean, parts of Iceland, Spain, and it ends in the Mediterranean Sea. In Florence, it will be a partial solar eclipse with maximum obscuration of 92.07%. Several teams of scientist from the US National Solar Observatory will travel to Spain to observe this total eclipse. We will post updates from these eclipse expeditions later. 

Solar Activity Report: July 20 -26, 2026

 Solar activity remained mostly at low levels during the past week.  The X‑ray intensity hovered between high B-class and low C-class. B-class is defined as the X-ray intensity (brightness) below 10^-6 W/m^2, and C-class starts at 10^-6 W/m^2 as measured in 1-8 Angstrom wavelength range. Most of the activity originated from active region 14493, which produced five M‑class flares. Three impulsive events, M2.5, M1.1, and M3.4, occurred on July 20. Two additional M-class flares, M1.9 and M3.6, were recorded on July 21 and July 22, respectively, with the M3.6 event being the strongest of the week. Another notable event was an M3.2 on July 26 from active region 14494. No Earth‑directed CMEs were observed during this period.

Helioseismic maps of the far hemisphere do not show any significant magnetic activity.