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Solar wind
speed: 349.3 km/sec
density: 4.4 protons/cm3
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2341 UT
X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: C3
2254 UT Oct08
24-hr: C3
2254 UT Oct08
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at: 2300 UT
Daily Sun: 08 Oct 14
None of these sunspots poses a threat for strong flares. Solar activity is low. Credit: SDO/HMI
Sunspot number: 75
What is the sunspot number?
Updated 08 Oct 2014

Spotless Days
Current Stretch: 0 days
2014 total: 1 day (<1%)
2013 total: 0 days (0%)
2012 total: 0 days (0%)
2011 total: 2 days (<1%)
2010 total: 51 days (14%)
2009 total: 260 days (71%)

Update 08 Oct
2014

The Radio Sun
10.7 cm flux: 125 sfu
explanation | more data
Updated 08 Oct 2014

Current Auroral Oval:
Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica
Credit: NOAA/POES
Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 2 quiet
24-hr max: Kp= 3
quiet
explanation | more data
Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 7.1 nT
Bz: 2.3 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2347 UT
Coronal Holes: 08 Oct 14
There are no large coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun. Credit: SDO/AIA.

Spaceweather.com posts daily satellite images of noctilucent clouds (NLCs), which hover over Earth's poles at the edge of space. The data come from NASA's AIM spacecraft. The north polar "daisy" pictured below is a composite of near-realtime images from AIM assembled by researchers at the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP).
Noctilucent Clouds
Switch view: Europe, USA, Asia, Polar
Updated at: 09-02-2014 12:55:12
SPACE WEATHER
NOAA Forecasts
Updated at: 2014 Oct 08 2200 UTC
FLARE
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
CLASS M
05 %
05 %
CLASS X
01 %
01 %
Geomagnetic Storms:
Probabilities for significant disturbances in Earth's magnetic field are given for three activity levels: active, minor storm, severe storm
Updated at: 2014 Oct 08 2200 UTC
Mid-latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
15 %
15 %
MINOR
05 %
05 %
SEVERE
01 %
01 %
High latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
15 %
15 %
MINOR
25 %
20 %
SEVERE
20 %
20 %
 
Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014
What's up in space
 

On October 23rd there will be a partial eclipse of the Sun. Got clouds? No problem. The event will be broadcast live on the web by the Coca-Cola Science Center.

 
Solar Eclipse Live

QUIET SUN: There are six sunspot groups on the face of the sun. None of them has the kind of unstable magnetic field that poses a threat for strong eruptions. NOAA forecasters estimate a scant 5% chance of M-class solar flares and a 1% chance of X-flares on Oct. 8th. Solar flare alerts: text, voice

COLORFUL LUNAR ECLIPSE: Lunar eclipses are supposed to be red. This morning's eclipse had an extra dash of turquoise. "The colors on this eclipsed moon were more varied and vivid than any in memory -- maybe because it stayed so close to the edge of the shadow for the duration of the eclipse," reports astronomy professor Jimmy Westlake, who sends this picture from Stagecoach, COlorado:

"Nearly every color of the rainbow appeared on the Moon just before the end of totality," he says.

Atmospheric scientist Richard Keen of the University of Colorado explains the colors: "During a lunar eclipse, most of the light illuminating the Moon passes through Earth's stratosphere where it is reddened by scattering. However, light passing through the upper stratosphere penetrates the ozone layer, which absorbs red light and actually makes the passing light ray bluer." This can be seen, he says, as a soft blue fringe around the red core of Earth's shadow--colors which are reflected from the surface of the Moon.

Visit the realtime photo gallery for more colorful snapshots of the Oct. 8th lunar eclipse.

Realtime Eclipse Photo Gallery

AURORAS AT THE BEACH: "Yesterday afternoon, I headed out to Andøya island," says Frank Olsen of northern Norway." I was hoping to catch a nice sunset, and maybe more." This is what he saw:

"I was on a beach on the northwest corner of the island. Bright moonlight lighting up the waves made the photos quite nice," continues Olsen. "On my way back home, around midnight, there was a great outburst. I stopped the car and ran back down to the beach for another photo session."

Waves in Norway could turn green again tonight. The interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) around Earth is tipping south on Oct. 8th, an arrangement that opens a crack in Earth magnetosphere. Solar wind pouring through the gap will likely spark more auroras around the Arctic Circle. Aurora alerts: text, voice

Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery


Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery


Realtime Comet Photo Gallery

  All Sky Fireball Network

Every night, a network of NASA all-sky cameras scans the skies above the United States for meteoritic fireballs. Automated software maintained by NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office calculates their orbits, velocity, penetration depth in Earth's atmosphere and many other characteristics. Daily results are presented here on Spaceweather.com.

On Oct. 8, 2014, the network reported 43 fireballs.
(43 sporadics)

In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). [Larger image] [movies]

  Near Earth Asteroids
Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are space rocks larger than approximately 100m that can come closer to Earth than 0.05 AU. None of the known PHAs is on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.
On October 8, 2014 there were potentially hazardous asteroids.
Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
Asteroid
Date(UT)
Miss Distance
Size
2014 SF304
Oct 5
1.9 LD
16 m
2014 TM
Oct 5
4.5 LD
24 m
2014 SB145
Oct 6
4.4 LD
23 m
2001 EA16
Oct 7
35.5 LD
1.9 km
2011 TB4
Oct 9
4.9 LD
34 m
2014 TR
Oct 11
9.9 LD
15 m
2010 FV9
Oct 11
8.7 LD
36 m
2014 TV
Oct 18
4.5 LD
61 m
2014 SC324
Oct 24
1.4 LD
62 m
2003 UC20
Oct 31
52.4 LD
1.0 km
2004 JN13
Nov 18
52.4 LD
4.1 km
1998 SS49
Nov 18
73.9 LD
3.2 km
2005 UH3
Nov 22
44.4 LD
1.3 km
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. 1 LD also equals 0.00256 AU. MAG is the visual magnitude of the asteroid on the date of closest approach.
  Essential web links
NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
  The official U.S. government space weather bureau
Atmospheric Optics
  The first place to look for information about sundogs, pillars, rainbows and related phenomena.
Solar Dynamics Observatory
  Researchers call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO is the most advanced solar observatory ever.
STEREO
  3D views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial Relations Observatory
Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
  Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO.
Daily Sunspot Summaries
  from the NOAA Space Environment Center
Heliophysics
  the underlying science of space weather
Space Weather Alerts
   
  more links...
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