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Astrophotographer Captures Incredible Sunspot Close-Ups From His Backyard

By Jessica Stewart on June 6, 2024

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A post shared by Andrew McCarthy (@cosmic_background)

Astrophotographer Andrew McCarthy is known for his ultra-high-definition photos of the Sun, and now he's focusing his equipment on an interesting detail of our star. AR3697 is a massive sunspot that has gotten a lot of attention lately, as it's the main cause of May's vibrant auroras. McCarthy has been tracking the sunspot from his backyard and put together some incredible time-lapses of its activity.

This region has been a hotbed of activity lately, with a flurry of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) causing a large geomagnetic storm. McCarthy has been taking advantage of the opportunity to capture the enormous solar flares, some the size of Jupiter, that have been a regular occurrence of late.

“Unlike most celestial objects, the Sun looks quite different from day to day, and is filled with exciting events like flares or coronal mass ejections,” the astrophotographer shares. “There's always something interesting to look at!”

Heading out at solar maximum over the course of five days, McCarthy has been able to share with the world just how mesmerizing the Sun's surface is. Each timelapse includes hours of activity, giving a clear view of the activity that's happening on the sunspot.

To see what will happen next, keep tuning into McCarthy's Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), where he shares his work and sometimes livestreams his creative process.