 Where's Saturn? Is that a UFO--or the ISS? What's the name of that star? Get the answers from mySKY--a fun new astronomy helper from Meade. . SUPER-METEOR: On Sept. 29th, an extraordinary fireball streaked over Finland. It was so bright, video cameras recorded its glow without even pointing in the direction of the meteor. Click on the video links in this Finnish language report to see the all-sky outburst. Local astronomers believe the fireball was a random space rock (not part of any known meteoroid stream) massing some 200 kg: more. COMETO-MAGNETIC STORM: For the first time ever, astronomers may have witnessed a geomagnetic storm--on a comet. It happened in April 2007 when a coronal mass ejection (CME) hit Comet Encke. Click on the image below to view a just-released movie of the collision: 
Movie credit: NASA's STEREO-A probe.
At first glance, the CME seems to rip the comet's tail off by means of brute force. But CMEs are too gossamer for that. Instead, researchers believe, the comet experienced a magnetic storm akin to geomagnetic storms that spark auroras on Earth. The energy of the storm rent Comet Encke's tail as described in the full story from Science@NASA. COMET LONEOS: "Comet LONEOS (C/2007 F1) is here!" reports Tony Cook of Leeds, UK, who took this picture on Sept. 30th: 
"Over the next month this comet is predicted to increase in brightness to 4th magnitude--barely visible to the naked eye but an easy target for backyard telescopes," he says. Comet LONEOS is not a frequent visitor to the inner solar system. One analysis suggests it was last in the neighborhood 42,000 years ago. It's equally possible, however, that the comet has never been close to the sun before; this could be its first plunge. The uncertainty adds suspense to Oct. 29th when LONEOS will approach the sun almost as close as Mercury. Will fresh veins of ice newly heated by sunlight burst forth to produce surprisingly bright jets and clouds? Stay tuned! Cook's Sept. 30th image "was taken under bright moonlight just before dawn," he adds. "Even under these difficult conditions a fine but faint linear tail can be seen. As the moon departs and the comet gets closer to the sun, the view can only get better and brighter!" Astrophotographers, if you wish to try to catch the comet, look below the handle of the Big Dipper for a green 8th magnitude fuzzball. [sky maps: morning, evening] [ephemeris] [3D orbit]
September 2007 Aurora Gallery
[August 2007 Aurora Gallery] [Aurora Alerts] | 
