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LEONID METEOR SHOWER ALERT: Earth is approaching the debris zone of Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, source of the annual Leonid meteor shower. This is not a good year for Leonids. The shower's nominal peak on Nov. 17th is expected to produce no more than 15 meteors per hour. But! There is a chance of a surprise. Some forecasters believe that Earth might graze a 300-year old stream of debris on Nov. 19th, producing an outburst of 50 to 200 meteors per hour. Its timing favors observers in the eastern half of North America, who should be alert for meteor activity this Saturday morning between 1:00 and 1:30 am EST. [full story]
LIFTOFF! ARTEMIS HAS LEFT EARTH: NASA's giant Artemis I rocket succesfully launched from the Kennedy Space Center on Nov. 16th at 1:47 am EST. The thrilling, thunderous launch lit up the night sky and shook the ground with almost 9 million pounds of thrust. NASA says that the Orion crew capsule (unoccupied for this first test flight) is now on its way to the Moon.
Dr. Gilbert Plumer watched the launched from Rockledge, Florida, where he photographed Artemis and its target (above). "Even though I was 20 miles from the launch pad, there was still enough light for me to read by," says Plumer.
This marks the beginning of a mission that could last as long as 42 days. After more than a week in transit, Orion will orbit the Moon for up to 19 days (approaching the lunar surface within 62 miles) and travel 40,000 miles beyond the far side of the Moon before turning back to Earth. The pictures it takes of the Moon during this time will be unique and spectacular.
The capsule will stay in space longer than any human spacecraft has (without docking to a space station) and return home faster and hotter than ever before. A key goal of the mission is to test Orion's heat shield when it slams into Earth's atmosphere at 25,000 mph and heats up to 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
If all goes well, future launches will carry crew. Astronauts will orbit the Moon in 2024 (Artemis II), then touch down near the Moon's south pole in 2025 (Artemis III). The moonwalkers will include the first woman to step onto the lunar surface.
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WHY DO RUSSIAN ROCKETS MAKE "BLUE AURORAS"? On Nov. 3rd, 2022, sky watchers in Sweden and Norway watched a strange blue aurora snake across the night sky. Its color and motion seemed to defy the normal laws of aurora physics. Indeed, it was not an aurora. Experts quickly realized that the display coincided with the launch of an ICBM from a Russian submarine beneath the White Sea.
It wasn't the first time blue clouds have appeared. On Dec. 9, 2009, a Russian rocket caused a worldwide sensation when it created a blue spiral over Norway. "Blue auroras" appeared again on Oct. 26, 2017, following another Russian battle drill:
The blue exhaust of a Russian rocket on Oct. 26, 2017. Credit: Alexey Yakovlev of Strezhevoy, Russia
Over the years, Arctic sky watchers have seen many of these blue clouds, with explanations ranging from auroras to aliens to wormholes in space. In fact, rockets are the most likely explanation. Common threads seem to be the involvement of Bulava and Topol missiles, and the use of solid propellant ascent motors.
A paper published in 2016, "Exceptional optical phenomena observed during the operation of Russian launchers," explains how such rockets might produce blue lights:
"A major combustion product of the solid fuel is aluminum oxide Al2O3 (~40% by mass)," the authors write. "At high temperatures, the formation of aluminum monoxide, AlO, also occurs. AlO exists in a gaseous state. Resonant scattering of sunlight by these molecules causes the luminescence in the wavelength region 4374–5424 Ǻ, which corresponds to the turquoise color of the gas-dust trail of the rocket."
Mystery solved? Probably. But that doesn't mean we don't want to investigate further. Arctic sky watchers, if you see any future "blue auroras," submit your photos here.
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"I LOVE YOU MORE" OPAL: Nothing says "I love you" like jewelry from space. This sterling silver opal pendant just hitched a ride to the stratosphere on an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon. At the apex of the flight it floated 101,326 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California:
You can have it for $142.95. The opal's infinity wrap is engraved with "I Love You More." It's the perfect birthday, anniversary or (never too early!) Christmas gift for that special someone who loves space. Each pendant comes with a greeting card showing the pendant in flight and telling the story of its trip to the stratosphere and back.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
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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 Nov 16, 2022, the network reported 8 fireballs.
(6 sporadics, 2 northern Taurids)
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 November 16, 2022 there were 2314 potentially hazardous asteroids.
|
Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters: Asteroid | Date(UT) | Miss Distance | Velocity (km/s) | Diameter (m) |
2022 VM1 | 2022-Nov-11 | 6 LD | 13.9 | 19 |
2022 VZ1 | 2022-Nov-11 | 14.1 LD | 15.1 | 73 |
2022 VP | 2022-Nov-11 | 8.1 LD | 5.1 | 19 |
2022 VO1 | 2022-Nov-11 | 3.5 LD | 6 | 15 |
2022 UV14 | 2022-Nov-11 | 10.8 LD | 7.6 | 18 |
2020 FC4 | 2022-Nov-12 | 19.3 LD | 13.3 | 78 |
2022 VG2 | 2022-Nov-13 | 3.8 LD | 12.3 | 20 |
2022 VE | 2022-Nov-13 | 11.3 LD | 9.6 | 31 |
2022 VL1 | 2022-Nov-13 | 1.2 LD | 8.7 | 15 |
2022 UH16 | 2022-Nov-14 | 14.8 LD | 9.8 | 22 |
2022 UP2 | 2022-Nov-14 | 10.6 LD | 6 | 34 |
2022 VP2 | 2022-Nov-14 | 6.2 LD | 12.9 | 17 |
2022 VH2 | 2022-Nov-15 | 8 LD | 5.6 | 17 |
2019 VL5 | 2022-Nov-15 | 8.5 LD | 8.1 | 24 |
2022 UD28 | 2022-Nov-16 | 11 LD | 11.5 | 30 |
2018 WH | 2022-Nov-16 | 2.5 LD | 7.7 | 4 |
2022 US14 | 2022-Nov-18 | 8.5 LD | 8.3 | 41 |
2022 VM2 | 2022-Nov-18 | 8.2 LD | 3.7 | 24 |
2022 VO2 | 2022-Nov-19 | 8.9 LD | 14.6 | 24 |
2022 VU1 | 2022-Nov-20 | 7 LD | 7.1 | 17 |
2022 VR1 | 2022-Nov-20 | 4.1 LD | 5.7 | 39 |
2022 VX | 2022-Nov-20 | 11.2 LD | 5.9 | 14 |
2019 OR1 | 2022-Nov-21 | 18.1 LD | 13.4 | 246 |
2022 VS1 | 2022-Nov-22 | 6.5 LD | 7.7 | 23 |
2005 LW3 | 2022-Nov-23 | 3 LD | 13.5 | 168 |
2022 UD72 | 2022-Nov-26 | 10.6 LD | 4.3 | 20 |
2022 VQ | 2022-Nov-27 | 7.6 LD | 8.2 | 25 |
2022 VB2 | 2022-Nov-29 | 9 LD | 8.5 | 34 |
2010 VQ | 2022-Dec-02 | 11.9 LD | 3.9 | 10 |
2009 HV58 | 2022-Dec-02 | 12.3 LD | 28.8 | 427 |
2022 UT8 | 2022-Dec-02 | 11.1 LD | 4.2 | 66 |
2017 QL33 | 2022-Dec-03 | 16 LD | 6.9 | 195 |
2022 VP1 | 2022-Dec-05 | 17.3 LD | 7.1 | 57 |
2019 XY | 2022-Dec-10 | 3.6 LD | 12.9 | 9 |
2003 YS70 | 2022-Dec-13 | 10.4 LD | 4.1 | 5 |
2019 XQ1 | 2022-Dec-13 | 14.5 LD | 9.8 | 30 |
2018 XU3 | 2022-Dec-13 | 14.8 LD | 10.3 | 30 |
2021 XS4 | 2022-Dec-14 | 14.5 LD | 9.7 | 23 |
2015 RN35 | 2022-Dec-15 | 1.8 LD | 5.9 | 84 |
2016 YE | 2022-Dec-18 | 18.6 LD | 4.8 | 23 |
2014 HK129 | 2022-Dec-20 | 6.7 LD | 11.6 | 214 |
2017 XQ60 | 2022-Dec-21 | 18.8 LD | 16 | 45 |
2022 UD9 | 2022-Dec-22 | 4.6 LD | 10.3 | 154 |
2022 RD2 | 2022-Dec-22 | 13.9 LD | 1.1 | 7 |
2013 YA14 | 2022-Dec-25 | 2.7 LD | 10.5 | 68 |
2022 TE14 | 2022-Dec-25 | 11.2 LD | 7 | 127 |
2018 YK2 | 2022-Dec-26 | 15.8 LD | 15.1 | 98 |
2010 XC15 | 2022-Dec-27 | 2 LD | 10.1 | 184 |
2021 AE | 2022-Dec-28 | 16.5 LD | 15 | 23 |
2021 NF | 2023-Jan-02 | 17.9 LD | 11.3 | 40 |
2011 WR41 | 2023-Jan-03 | 15.8 LD | 8.9 | 34 |
2019 AY3 | 2023-Jan-04 | 16.8 LD | 19.7 | 62 |
2021 TL | 2023-Jan-09 | 14.2 LD | 8.5 | 75 |
2014 LJ | 2023-Jan-14 | 4.8 LD | 3.5 | 7 |
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 7 years, resulting in a unique dataset of in situ atmospheric measurements.
Latest results (July 2022): Atmospheric radiation is decreasing in 2022. Our latest measurements in July 2022 registered a 6-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.
| 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 |
| 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 |
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