You are viewing the page for Aug. 9, 2008
  Select another date:
<<back forward>>
SpaceWeather.com -- News and information about meteor showers, solar flares, auroras, and near-Earth asteroids
SPACE WEATHER
Current conditions
Solar wind
speed: 643.3 km/sec
density: 4.3 protons/cm3
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2246 UT
X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: A0
2245 UT Aug09
24-hr: A0
2245 UT Aug09
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at: 2245 UT
Daily Sun: 09 Aug 08
The sun is blank--no sunspots. Credit: SOHO/MDI
Sunspot number: 0
What is the sunspot number?
Updated 09 Aug. 2008
Far side of the Sun:
This holographic image reveals no sunspots on the far side of the sun. Image credit: SOHO/MDI
Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 5 storm
24-hr max: Kp= 5
storm
explanation | more data
Current Auroral Oval:
Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica
Credit: NOAA/POES
What is the auroral oval?
Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 7.4 nT
Bz: 5.1 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2247 UT
Coronal Holes:
Earth is entering a solar wind stream flowing from the indicated coronal hole. Credit: SOHO Extreme UV Telescope
SPACE WEATHER
NOAA Forecasts
Updated at: 2008 Aug 09 2201 UTC
FLARE
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
CLASS M
01 %
01 %
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: 2008 Aug 09 2201 UTC
Mid-latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
20 %
10 %
MINOR
01 %
01 %
SEVERE
01 %
01 %
High latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
25 %
20 %
MINOR
05 %
05 %
SEVERE
01 %
01 %
What's up in Space
August 9, 2008
AURORA ALERTS: Did you miss the Northern Lights of July 12th? Next time get a wake-up call from Space Weather PHONE.  

AURORA WATCH: High-latitude sky watchers, be alert for auroras. Earth is entering a solar wind stream that could spark geomagnetic storms tonight: gallery.

AT THE EDGE OF SPACE: Yes, noctilucent clouds really do hover "at the edge of space." Consider this photo taken on July 22nd by astronauts onboard the International Space Station:

The electric-blue band, a noctilucent cloud, lies approximately 83 km (51 miles) above Earth's surface. The sky at that altitude is space-black. It is the realm of meteors, high-energy auroras, and tiny crystals of ice that glow blue when struck by sunlight. Noctilucent clouds (NLCs) are made of those crystals; how they form in the extremely-dry upper reaches of Earth's atmosphere is a mystery.

The space station was located some 320 km (200 miles) above Mongolia at the time of the display. Astronauts pointed their camera out a north-looking window where the midnight sun illuminated the clouds. The black expanse of Earth at the base of the snapshot is Russia.

The view from the ISS is stunning, but space travel is not required to see NLCs. These mostly-polar clouds have been sighted in recent years from Earth's surface as far south as Oregon, Washington, Iran and Turkey. Browse the gallery for observing tips.

LUNAR X: Last night, August 8th, a luminous X appeared on the Moon. "It was easily visible through both a 16-inch reflecting telescope and a 4-inch refractor," reports Kevin Jung of Lowell, Michigan. "I put my camera on the 16-inch at prime focus to capture this image."

Jung witnessed the "Lunar X." Once a month when the sun rises over Crater Werner in the Moon's southern hemisphere, sunlight floods the region's high terrain and makes a luminous criss-cross shape. The effect lasts only about two hours so careful timing and a little luck is required to catch it. "The sky was clear and the Moon was just past first quarter by a few hours," says Jung. Perfect.

"Observing the 'X' has little or no scientific value. It is a trick of the light. But the effect is striking, and it is exciting to rediscover each month," writes David Chapman in "A Fleeting Vision near Crater Werner" (Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Vol. 101, Issue 2, p.51).

The next apparition: September 7th at 0945 UT. Mark your calendar with an X.

more images: from Mark Seibold of Portland, Oregon; from David Thomas of Lynchburg, Virginia; from John Scarfone of Clifton, Virginia;


Solar Eclipse Photo Gallery
[interactive eclipse map]

       
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 August 9, 2008 , there were 972 potentially hazardous asteroids.
August 2008 Earth-asteroid encounters:
Asteroid
Date(UT)
Miss Distance
Mag.
Size
54509 YORP
Aug. 1
67 LD
22
130 m
2008 PK9
Aug. 11
11 LD
18
50 m
2008 ON10
Aug. 11
12 LD
19
50 m
2001 RT17
Aug. 14
69 LD
17
1.2 km
1991 VH
Aug. 15
18 LD
15
1.8 km
2008 MZ
Aug. 31
60 LD
17
1.1 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 Links
NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
  The official U.S. government bureau for real-time monitoring of solar and geophysical events, research in solar-terrestrial physics, and forecasting solar and geophysical disturbances.
Atmospheric Optics
  The first place to look for information about sundogs, pillars, rainbows and related phenomena.
Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
  Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO.
Daily Sunspot Summaries
  From the NOAA Space Environment Center
Current Solar Images
  from the National Solar Data Analysis Center
  more links...
   
©2008, SpaceWeather.com -- This site is penned daily by Dr. Tony Phillips.
©2019 Spaceweather.com. All rights reserved.