Solar Active Region 2790 – Sketch – PST 40 h-alpha / 8mm eyepiece/50X Pastel pencil, silicone tipped brush.07/12/2020 11:30 UT – 1:30 UT Killadoon Co Mayo Ireland
Drawing Active Region 2790
It was mid-morning by the time I was free to observe active region 2790. That AR was the larger of the two visible on the solar disc. After I set up my chair, drawing equipment and solar telescope, it took some time to settle into the drawing. It is my habit to observe the subject before deciding on how I will deal with it.
This was a very dramatic, active area. Swirling fibrils were well defined around the sunspot. Solar drawing is difficult because for me anyway, I have to break the view down into shapes. Then I can draw that shape on my page. However, many references back to the shape and the page must take place for the drawing to be accurate. Sometimes the view is stable for say ten minutes. Then it may deteriorate for a time before becoming crystal clear again. This process can be very time consuming and takes lots of concentration.
The large claw-like filament leaping above the sunspot stood out very clearly to me. To the left, another dramatic dark filament was in action. Its anchors magnetically bolting it down looked like pincers. Several were present tentatively holding the energy of its arcs. Anchoring the power of a giant curtain of plasma.
Meanwhile, my eye was pulled towards Active Region 2791 which was developing a distinctive X shaped plage within its domain. It was very bright and distracted me for a while. However, I decided to keep drawing the area close to AR 2790 because there was more than enough detail there.
I choose to draw the area with pastel pencil using a silicone tipped brush. This silicone instrument gives me a better way of dealing with the complex shapes that magnetic activity forms around sunspots. Drawing solar features is an ongoing experiment with materials. One I enjoy very much when I get the chance.
During this session, I had to move my set up backwards several times. The reason being was the sun heading down behind tall pine trees near my house. The more experimental solar drawings I try out, the better my journey becomes toward capturing the best detail possible.
