Automatic sunspots detection on SODISM solar images

The surface of the sun often shows visible sunspots which are located in magnetically active regions of the Sun, and whose number is an indicator of the Sun's magnetic activity. The detection and classification of sunspots are useful techniques in the monitoring and prediction of solar activity. The automated detection of sunspots from digital images is complicated by their irregularities in shape and variable contrast and intensity compared with their surrounding area. The main aim of this paper is to detect sunspots using images from the Solar Diameter Imager and Surface Mapper (SODISM) on the PICARD satellite and calculate their filling factors. A comparison over time with sunspot numbers obtained using images from the SOHO satellite is also presented.