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SpaceWeather.com -- News and information about meteor showers, solar flares, auroras, and near-Earth asteroids

SpaceWeather.com
Science news and information about the Sun-Earth environment.

SPACE WEATHER
Current
Conditions

Solar Wind

speed: 401.9 km/s
density:
3.7 protons/cm3
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2246 UT

X-ray Solar Flares

6-hr max:
C1 2100 UT Jan06
24-hr: C2 0945 UT Jan06
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2245 UT

Daily Sun: 06 Jan '03
Sunspots 242 and 243 have "beta-gamma" magnetic fields that harbor energy for M-class solar flares. Image credit: SOHO/MDI

The Far Side of the Sun

This holographic image reveals no substantial sunspot groups on the far side of the Sun. Image credit: SOHO/MDI

Sunspot Number: 128
What is the sunspot number?
Updated: 05 Jan 2003

Coronal Holes:

Solar wind gusts from the indicated coronal hole could buffet Earth's magnetic field as early as Jan. 9th. Image credit: SOHO Extreme UV Telescope.
More about coronal holes

Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 4.8 nT
Bz:
1.3 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2246 UT


SPACE WEATHER
NOAA
Forecasts

Solar Flares: Probabilities for a medium-sized (M-class) or a major (X-class) solar flare during the next 24/48 hours are tabulated below.
Updated at 2003 Jan 06 2200 UTC
FLARE 0-24 hr 24-48 hr
CLASS M 30 % 30 %
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 2003 Jan 06 2200 UTC
Mid-latitudes
0-24 hr 24-48 hr
ACTIVE 10 % 10 %
MINOR 01 % 01 %
SEVERE 01 % 01 %

High latitudes
0-24 hr 24-48 hr
ACTIVE 15 % 15 %
MINOR 01 % 01 %
SEVERE 01 % 01 %

What's Up in Space -- 6 Jan 2003
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PERIHELION: Don't look, but the Sun is a little bigger than usual. That's because Earth is at perihelion--our annual closest approach to the Sun. The extra warmth is not enough to stop northern winter, however. Read the full story from Science@NASA.

ANALEMMA: If you took a picture of the Sun at the same time each day, would it remain in the same position? The answer is no, and the figure-8 shape traced out by the Sun over the course of a year is called an analemma. (continued below)

Anthony Ayiomamitis of Athens, Greece, photographed this analemma during the 12 months of 2002. The just-completed image consists of forty-two exposures on a single piece of film--extraordinary! [more]

CLOSE ENCOUNTER: The planet Saturn is gliding by the Crab Nebula in Taurus--a rare encounter that amateur astronomers can watch using backyard telescopes. On Jan. 4th when Saturn passed directly in front of the Crab, the planet's glare overwhelmed the wispy nebula--no one could see it. During the days ahead, however, the pair will separate and the nebula will become visible again. [sky map] [details: Jan 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th]

AURORA WATCH: Solar wind gusts from a small coronal hole could excite geomagnetic activity as early as Jan. 9th. Gusts from a larger coronal hole sparked auroras as far south as Arizona in the United States on Dec. 26th and 27th. [gallery]

WEB LINKS: NOAA FORECAST | GLOSSARY | SPACE WEATHER TUTORIAL | BECOME A SUBSCRIBER | SpaceWeather PHONE



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 are on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.

On 6 Jan 2003 there were 483 known Potentially
Hazardous Asteroids

Jan. 2003 Earth-asteroid encounters
ASTEROID

 MISS DISTANCE

 MAG.
2002 AA29

 Jan. 9

15 LD

 19
2002 CQ11

 Jan. 11

18 LD

 17
2003 AA3

 Jan. 11

29 LD

 17
Notes: LD is a "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.

  • LEONIDS 2002: The Leonids have come and gone, but our meteor gallery keeps growing. Check out the latest additions, which include a stunning image of 44 meteors emerging from the radiant in Leo.
  • DAWN PLANETS: Just before dawn on Sunday, Dec. 1st, the planets Venus and Mars converged and formed a lovely triangle with the slender crescent Moon. [gallery]
  • SUMMER AURORAS: August was a good month for auroras. Visit our gallery and see what happened in the skies of Europe and North America.
  • NEARBY ASTEROID: Asteroid 2002 NY40 came so close to Earth on August 18th that people could see it through binoculars or small telescopes. [gallery]
  • PERSEIDS 2002: Sky watchers spotted plenty of bright shooting stars--including some colorful earthgrazers--during the 2002 Perseid meteor shower. [gallery]
  • AURORA SURPRISE: An unexpected geomagnetic storm began on August 1st as night fell across North America. Sky watchers spotted vivid auroras over both the United States and Canada.
  • CRESCENT SUN: See strange shadows, weird sunsets, eclipse dogs, crescent-eyed turkeys and extraordinary rings of fire photographed during the June 10th solar eclipse. [gallery]
Essential Web Links

NOAA Space Environment 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.

Solar and Heliospheric Observatory -- Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO. (European Mirror Site)

Daily Sunspot Summaries -- from the NOAA Space Environment Center.

Current Solar Images --a gallery of up-to-date solar pictures from the National Solar Data Analysis Center at the Goddard Space Flight Center.

Recent Solar Events -- a nice summary of current solar conditions from lmsal.com.

SOHO Farside Images of the Sun from SWAN and MDI.

The Latest SOHO Coronagraph Images -- from the Naval Research Lab

The Sun from Earth -- daily images of our star from the Big Bear Solar Observatory

List of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids -- from the Harvard Minor Planet Center.

Observable Comets -- from the Harvard Minor Planet Center.

What is the Interplanetary Magnetic Field? -- A lucid answer from the University of Michigan. See also the Anatomy of Earth's Magnetosphere.

Real-time Solar Wind Data -- from NASA's ACE spacecraft.

More Real-time Solar Wind Data -- from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory Proton Monitor.

Aurora Forecast --from the University of Alaska's Geophysical Institute

Daily Solar Flare and Sunspot Data -- from the NOAA Space Environment Center.

Lists of Coronal Mass Ejections -- from 1998 to 2001
What is an Iridium flare?

Vandenberg AFB missile launch schedule.

What is an Astronomical Unit, or AU?

NOAA Solar Flare and Sunspot Data: 1999; 2000; 2001; Jan-Mar., 2002; Apr-Jun., 2002; Jul-Sep., 2002; Oct-Dec., 2002;

Recent International Astronomical Union Circulars

 

 

 

 

 

 
Editor's Note: Space weather forecasts that appear on this site are based in part on data from NASA and NOAA satellites and ground-monitoring stations. Predictions and explanations are formulated by Dr. Tony Phillips; they are not official statements of any government organ or guarantees of space weather activity.

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