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Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica
Credit: NOAA/Ovation
Planetary K-index
Now: Kp=
2.33 quiet
24-hr max: Kp= 2.67 quiet
explanation | more
data
Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 3.55 nT
Bz: 1.25 nT north
more data: ACE, DSCOVR
Updated: Today at 0631 UT
Coronal Holes: 22 Aug 25
Solar wind flowing from this coronal hole should reach Earth onAug. 25-26. Credit: NASA/SDO | more data
Polar Stratospheric Clouds
Colorful Type II polar stratospheric clouds (PSC) form when the temperature in the stratosphere drops to a staggeringly low -85C. NASA's MERRA-2 climate model predicts when the air up there is cold enough:
On Aug 22, 2025, the Arctic stratosphere is much too hot for polar stratospheric clouds. | more data.
Noctilucent Clouds
The northern season for noctilucent clouds is underway. First reports of the electric-blue clouds came from Russia on May 28, 2025. Since then, the clouds have spread to lower latitudes, reaching Paris, France, during a major outbreak on June 23, 2025.
Above: Aug. 20, 2025, Helsinki, Finland
"What a pretty sight with the Moon, Jupiter and Venus gathered in the dawn sky," says photographer Pentti Arpalahti .
See the complete NLC Photo Gallery
SPACE WEATHER
NOAA Forecasts |
|
Updated at: 2025 Aug 22 2200 UTC
FLARE |
0-24
hr |
24-48
hr |
CLASS M |
15
% |
20
% |
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: 2025 Aug 22 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 |
20
% |
20
% |
SEVERE |
20
% |
20
% |
|
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|
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This is an AI Free Zone: Text created by Large Language Models is spreading across the Internet. It's well-written, but frequently inaccurate. If you find a mistake on Spaceweather.com, rest assured it was made by a real human being.
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LATE-SEASON NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS: Usually the summer season for noctilucent clouds (NLCs) is over by now. Instead, Arctic sky watchers are seeing some very bright NLCs. Yesterday in Kiruna, Sweden, the clouds were so bright "it seemed like sunrise," reports Elmar Nestlen. Polar air travelers have seen dramatic displays, too. We're examining satellite data now in search of an explanation. Stay tuned.
BRIGHT FARSIDE CME: On Aug. 21st, a fast-moving CME blew away from the farside of the sun, forming a complete halo around the solar disk. The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) recorded the explosion:
Radio emissions from shock waves inside the CME suggest it was moving at 1,200 km/s (2.7 million mph)--very fast, but not record-setting. If it hit Earth, it would almost certainly spark a strong geomagnetic storm.
However, it will not hit Earth. Instead, a NASA model predicts it will strike Mars on Aug. 25th, potentially sparking global UV auroras around the Red Planet.
The source of the CME is not completely hidden. Hemioseismic maps of the sun's farside reveal the echo of a large sunspot at the probable location of the blast site:
This farside sunspot is not far behind the sun's eastern limb and, indeed, only few days away from turning to face Earth. The next CME might hit us instead of Mars. Stay tuned!
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
SPACE BALLS FOR GOLFERS: It was an out-of-this-world drive. On May 25th, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a basket of space-helmeted golf balls to the edge of space on board a cosmic ray research balloon. Here they are floating 119,000 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California:
For $49.95 you can have a set of 3 space balls along with a unique gift card showing the balls floating at the top of Earth’s atmosphere. The interior of the card tells the story of the flight and confirms that this gift has been to the edge of space and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
Realtime Noctilucent Cloud Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
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 Aug 22, 2025, the network reported 11 fireballs.
(8 sporadics, 2 Southern Delta Aquariids, 1 Northern Delta Aquariid)
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]
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 23, 2025 there were 2349 potentially hazardous asteroids.
 |
Recent
& Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT) |
Miss Distance |
Velocity (km/s) |
Diameter (m) |
| 2025 QR |
2025-Aug-17 |
7 LD |
12.2 |
25 |
| 2025 PH3 |
2025-Aug-17 |
14.1 LD |
7.2 |
30 |
| 2025 PM |
2025-Aug-17 |
2.7 LD |
13.5 |
54 |
| 2025 PL2 |
2025-Aug-18 |
4.5 LD |
25.2 |
21 |
| 2025 QF3 |
2025-Aug-18 |
5.2 LD |
7.7 |
7 |
| 2025 PB2 |
2025-Aug-18 |
5.6 LD |
17.3 |
32 |
| 2025 QC |
2025-Aug-18 |
14.6 LD |
7.6 |
19 |
| 2025 PY1 |
2025-Aug-18 |
0.8 LD |
6.8 |
10 |
| 2025 QA1 |
2025-Aug-18 |
16.3 LD |
12.3 |
31 |
| 2025 PM1 |
2025-Aug-20 |
9.7 LD |
4.9 |
25 |
| 2025 OV4 |
2025-Aug-20 |
7.6 LD |
10.8 |
52 |
| 1997 QK1 |
2025-Aug-20 |
7.9 LD |
9.8 |
315 |
| 2025 PW2 |
2025-Aug-20 |
3.9 LD |
11.4 |
13 |
| 2025 OB3 |
2025-Aug-21 |
8.8 LD |
7 |
50 |
| 2022 QD3 |
2025-Aug-21 |
15 LD |
6.9 |
35 |
| 2025 PN2 |
2025-Aug-21 |
9.9 LD |
16.6 |
31 |
| 2025 QY |
2025-Aug-22 |
7.5 LD |
7.8 |
15 |
| 2023 PX |
2025-Aug-22 |
2.4 LD |
8.3 |
23 |
| 2025 QE2 |
2025-Aug-22 |
17.1 LD |
7.2 |
34 |
| 2025 PR |
2025-Aug-23 |
17.5 LD |
3.4 |
23 |
| 2019 QQ6 |
2025-Aug-24 |
9.4 LD |
17.2 |
31 |
| 2025 QB3 |
2025-Aug-26 |
19.1 LD |
7 |
21 |
| 2025 QC1 |
2025-Aug-27 |
4.2 LD |
9.4 |
22 |
| 2025 PM2 |
2025-Aug-27 |
9.7 LD |
18.5 |
62 |
| 2025 PX |
2025-Aug-29 |
16.5 LD |
7 |
53 |
| 2017 RK15 |
2025-Aug-29 |
15.8 LD |
13.2 |
26 |
| 2020 TS1 |
2025-Aug-29 |
17.8 LD |
3.3 |
5 |
| 1998 SH2 |
2025-Aug-30 |
8.1 LD |
17.3 |
246 |
| 2025 PJ3 |
2025-Sep-01 |
7.9 LD |
11.7 |
30 |
| 2025 PF3 |
2025-Sep-03 |
16.4 LD |
6.9 |
21 |
| 2025 OG1 |
2025-Sep-05 |
14.5 LD |
4.2 |
35 |
| 2019 JG1 |
2025-Sep-09 |
18.8 LD |
7.9 |
17 |
| 2009 FF |
2025-Sep-11 |
6.8 LD |
12.9 |
155 |
| 2025 QO1 |
2025-Sep-11 |
8.7 LD |
13.6 |
85 |
| 2015 SA |
2025-Sep-13 |
10.3 LD |
9.1 |
31 |
| 2022 SS2 |
2025-Sep-13 |
2.4 LD |
7.2 |
13 |
| 2025 QR1 |
2025-Sep-14 |
19.7 LD |
8.7 |
160 |
| 2025 FA22 |
2025-Sep-18 |
2.2 LD |
10.8 |
166 |
| 2025 PJ1 |
2025-Sep-21 |
11.6 LD |
11.9 |
134 |
| 2022 SW12 |
2025-Sep-23 |
15 LD |
17.6 |
210 |
| 2021 RN16 |
2025-Sep-23 |
10.1 LD |
8.8 |
7 |
| 2018 QT1 |
2025-Sep-23 |
13 LD |
12.7 |
138 |
| 2019 SF6 |
2025-Sep-28 |
20 LD |
8.4 |
20 |
| 152664 |
2025-Sep-29 |
10.1 LD |
18.6 |
412 |
| 2020 GE1 |
2025-Oct-02 |
13.7 LD |
4.7 |
14 |
| 2022 TU1 |
2025-Oct-08 |
16.9 LD |
12.9 |
10 |
| 2020 QU5 |
2025-Oct-09 |
7.1 LD |
13.6 |
26 |
| 2022 AY5 |
2025-Oct-14 |
7.4 LD |
8.4 |
5 |
| 2022 UY3 |
2025-Oct-15 |
10.2 LD |
7.4 |
15 |
| 2022 UU15 |
2025-Oct-19 |
14.8 LD |
16.1 |
34 |
Notes: LD means
"Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance
between Earth and the Moon. 1 LD also equals 0.00256
AU.
| |
Cosmic Rays in the Atmosphere |
SPACE WEATHER BALLOON DATA: Almost once a week, Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus fly space weather balloons to the stratosphere over California. These balloons are equipped with sensors that detect secondary cosmic rays, a form of radiation from space that can penetrate all the way down to Earth's surface. Our monitoring program has been underway without interruption for 10 years, resulting in a unique dataset of in situ atmospheric measurements.
Latest results (Nov. 2024): Atmospheric radiation is sharply decreasing in 2024. Our latest measurements in November registered a 10-year low:
What's going on? Ironically, the radiation drop is caused by increasing solar activity. Solar Cycle 25 has roared to life faster than forecasters expected. The sun's strengthening and increasingly tangled magnetic field repels cosmic rays from deep space. In addition, solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) sweep aside cosmic rays, causing sharp reductions called "Forbush Decreases." The two effects blend together to bring daily radiation levels down.
.Who cares? Cosmic rays are a surprisingly "down to Earth" form of space weather. They can alter the chemistry of the atmosphere, trigger lightning, and penetrate commercial airplanes. According to a study from the Harvard T.H. Chan school of public health, crews of aircraft have higher rates of cancer than the general population. The researchers listed cosmic rays, irregular sleep habits, and chemical contaminants as leading risk factors. A number of controversial studies (#1, #2, #3, #4) go even further, linking cosmic rays with cardiac arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death.
Technical notes: The radiation sensors onboard our helium balloons detect X-rays and gamma-rays in the energy range 10 keV to 20 MeV. These energies span the range of medical X-ray machines and airport security scanners.
Data points in the graph labeled "Stratospheric Radiation" correspond to the peak of the Regener-Pfotzer maximum, which lies about 67,000 feet above central California. When cosmic rays crash into Earth's atmosphere, they produce a spray of secondary particles that is most intense at the entrance to the stratosphere. Physicists Eric Regener and Georg Pfotzer discovered the maximum using balloons in the 1930s and it is what we are measuring today.
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The
official U.S. government space weather bureau |
| |
The
first place to look for information about sundogs,
pillars, rainbows and related phenomena. |
| |
Researchers
call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO
is the most advanced solar observatory ever. |
| |
3D
views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial
Relations Observatory |
| |
Realtime
and archival images of the Sun from SOHO. |
| |
information about sunspots based on the latest NOAA/USAF Active Region Summary |
| |
current counts of failed and deployed Starlink satellites from Jonathan's Space Page. See also, all satellite statistics. |
| |
Authoritative predictions of space junk and satellite re-entries |
| |
from
the NOAA Space Environment Center |
| |
fun to read, but should be taken with a grain of salt! Forecasts looking ahead more than a few days are often wrong. |
| |
from the NOAA Space Environment Center |
| |
the
underlying science of space weather |
 |
Got a chipped or cracked windshield that prevents you from seeing space weather events while driving? Get windshield replacement from SR Windows & Glass with free mobile auto glass service anywhere in the Phoenix area. |
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