Home
Weather Dublin
WeatherRadar
RainfallRadar
TemperatureRadar
WindRadar
LightningRadar
Weather News
Editor's Pick
Discover the app
Weather widget
Contact us
Apps
    Home / Editor's Pick /

    Astronomical Halloween: The Jack-o-lantern sun

10:00
31 October 2024

Astronomical Halloween
The Jack-o-lantern sun

Jack o lanterns
We all love carving a pumpkin at Halloween, even the sun is getting involved!

The sun looks to have pulled out its Halloween costume for the season, dressing as a classic jack-o'-lantern!

In actual fact, this picture was taken on October 8th 2014, but is perfect for today. The most active regions of the sun show up brighter and make the sun appear as our favourite carved pumpkin.

The shot was captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory which launched on February 11th 2010, with the mission to study how the sun creates solar activity which drives space weather.

This is no easy task and the SDO is not just a camera looking at the sun. It takes measurements of our solar system’s biggest star from the interior to the atmosphere, the magnetic field, and energy output.

Solar activity such as solar flares can have a huge impact on Earth’s communications systems. Where there is a strong solar storm, it impacts GPS systems, radios, and other ways of communicating on our very own planet.

Make sure the sun, and clouds, are going to behave for Halloween tonight by keeping check on the WeatherRadar through the day.

Check back for our trick-or-treat forecast out later today!

Ryan Hathaway
More on the topic
Autumn arrives with vivid colour. Your weather - Your shots. . . Sunday 6 September 2026
Split image showing peach-lit textured clouds above silhouetted trees and golden cumulus clouds reflected in a calm canal lined with boats.
Sunday 6 September 2026

Your weather - Your shots

Autumn arrives with vivid colour
Severe weather hits Mallorca and Italy. Severe thunderstorms. . Weather Videos. Thursday 10 September 2026
Numerous thunderstorms are sweeping across La Palma. The many lightning symbols on the radar and lightning map show that there is heavy lightning activity across large parts of the island. The thunderstorms are striking particularly in the island’s interior and in the south. On the right, you can see the aftermath: a large fallen tree has buried a car beneath it. Emergency services are clearing up the damage. So, along with the thunderstorms, not only heavy rain but also gusts of wind can become a problem.
Weather VideosThursday 10 September 2026

Severe thunderstorms

Severe weather hits Mallorca and Italy
More rain needed to ease drought. Reservoirs still falling. . . Tuesday 8 September 2026
Aerial view of a depleted reservoir with exposed banks and a narrow winding stream through the dry basin, surrounded by green hills and roads.
Tuesday 8 September 2026

Reservoirs still falling

More rain needed to ease drought
All weather news
This might also interest you
New records for England and Wales. Broken again tomorrow?. . . Thursday 25 June 2026
Temperature map of southwest Britain on 25.06 showing extreme heat across southern Wales and southwest England, with Bute Park in Cardiff highlighted at 34.2°C and Yeovilton at 36.4°C amid widespread deep red heat zones.
Thursday 25 June 2026

Broken again tomorrow?

New records for England and Wales
Bright and warm conditions take hold. Spring-like outlook. . . Thursday 23 April 2026
Split UK map showing warm temperatures up to 21 degrees in orange on the left and clear sunny conditions with temperatures from 12 to 18 degrees on the right, with sun icons across the country.
Thursday 23 April 2026

Spring-like outlook

Bright and warm conditions take hold
Storm Chandra makes impact. Severe gales & heavy rain. . . Tuesday 27 January 2026
Split image showing strong winds over the UK on a forecast map and widespread rain and snow on a weather radar map.
Tuesday 27 January 2026

Severe gales & heavy rain

Storm Chandra makes impact
All articles
Weather & Radar

Weather & Radar is also available on

Google Play StoreApp Store

Company

Contact us Privacy Policy Legal info Accessibility statement

Services

Uploader

Socials

facebooktwitteryouTubelinkList