sunspot in H-alpha (Blue Mountains)

I don't know if I've ever seen a sunspot with a hydrogen-alpha filter. This feels like the first time.

I only started looking at the Sun in Hα since I began hanging around all these astronomy geeks and freaks. And the Sun's been quiet. The last couple of years!

It's very spectacular, sun spot 1019! Lots of structure, all knotted and twisted, and detailed, light and dark swirls. It looks so three-dimensional!

This single sunspot complex reminds me of the navel on an orange...

I viewed it through the Tele Vue 101 APO (with a 540mm focal length) first with the Meade 56mm Super Plossl (9x) and then with the TV 18mm Radian (30x) using the Coronado SolarMax front and back elements (the back element is the blocking filter). I played with the T-Max de-tuning filter but it was perfect.

Sun's moved to the meridian. I'll give the 'scope a break.

I'm going to try in white light later...

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Oh! This must be making for some excitement at the Solar Observing Session at the Science Centre (tomorrow). Finally. Something interesting to look at.