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Solar wind
speed: 343.7 km/sec
density: 0.8 protons/cm3
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2346 UT
X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: C7
2007 UT Jan17
24-hr: C8
1608 UT Jan17
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at: 2300 UT
Daily Sun: 17 Jan 14
None of the sunspots on the Earthside of the sun poses a threat for strong flares. Solar activity is low. Credit: SDO/HMI
Sunspot number: 77
What is the sunspot number?
Updated 17 Jan 2014

Spotless Days
Current Stretch: 0 days
2014 total: 0 days (0%)
2013 total: 0 days (0%)
2012 total: 0 days (0%)
2011 total: 2 days (<1%)
2010 total: 51 days (14%)
2009 total: 260 days (71%)

Update
17 Jan 2014

The Radio Sun
10.7 cm flux: 121 sfu
explanation | more data
Updated 17 Jan 2014

Current Auroral Oval:
Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica
Credit: NOAA/POES
Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 1 quiet
24-hr max: Kp= 1
quiet
explanation | more data
Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 3.2 nT
Bz: 2.1 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2347 UT
Coronal Holes: 17 Jan 14
Solar wind flowing from the indicated coronal hole could reach Earth on Jan. 22.. Credit: SDO/AIA.

Spaceweather.com posts daily satellite images of noctilucent clouds (NLCs), which hover over Earth's poles at the edge of space. The data come from NASA's AIM spacecraft. The north polar "daisy" pictured below is a composite of near-realtime images from AIM assembled by researchers at the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP).
Noctilucent Clouds
Switch view: Europe, USA, Asia, Polar
Updated at: 01-17-2014 14:55:02
SPACE WEATHER
NOAA Forecasts
Updated at: 2014 Jan 17 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: 2014 Jan 17 2200 UTC
Mid-latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
30 %
05 %
MINOR
10 %
01 %
SEVERE
01 %
01 %
High latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
15 %
15 %
MINOR
30 %
15 %
SEVERE
40 %
05 %
 
Friday, Jan. 17, 2014
What's up in space
 

When is the best time to see auroras? Where is the best place to go? And how do you photograph them? These questions and more are answered in a new book, Northern Lights - a Guide, by Pal Brekke & Fredrik Broms.

 
Northern Lights - a Guide

CHANCE OF STORMS: NOAA forecasters estimate a 35% chance of polar geomagnetic storms on Jan. 17th when a minor CME is expected to hit Earth's magnetic field. High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for moonlit auroras. Aurora alerts: text, voice.

AURORA, BOOM! On Jan. 11th, Bjørn Hugo Hansen of Øverbygd, Norway, observed an explosive display of auroras--with sound effects. "The temperature was -27 C, and I was standing on the ice by our cabin. In the distance I could hear cracking sounds from the ice, a strange sound like a mix of whale bubbles hitting the ice and a small earthquake. This happens often. I believe it is stronger tonight, though, because of a big drop in temperature. Faint auroras were dancing quietly overhead when I spoke to myself -- 'Come on Aurora – give me all you got.' And BOOM! The sky exploded behind me." This is what he saw:

"Lady Aurora twisted around the sky, she threw her bridal veil all around," continues Hansen. "I was in ecstasy … and as if that was not enough,  the ice under me made a large DRUN! I had never heard the sound of the ice crack this close before, almost right under me. It was an enormous sound. A thin crack 5mm wide rushed across the lake. Then it became quiet and Aurora disappeared. AMAZING!"

A story like that makes you wish you were in Norway. Browse the gallery for more stories from the ice:

Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery

LIGHT PILLARS: Winter is unfolding around the northern hemisphere. As temperatures drop, pillars of light are springing up from ground. Janis Satrovskis of Valmiera, Latvia, photographed this specimen on Jan. 14th:

Light pillars are a common sight around northern cities in winter. Urban lights bounce off ice crystals in the air, producing tall luminous columns sometimes mistaken for auroras. Usually the ice crystals are natural, such as snow flakes, but in this case the atmospheric optics were artificial.

"The amazing phenomenon was created by snow blowing machines," explains Satrovskis. "These are our first days with temperatures below zero and ski resorts are making snow. A slight breeze carried manmade snow over the city, creating a spectacular view."

Light pillars are springing up in cold cities around the world. Is yours one of them? Browse the gallery for the latest sightings.

Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery


Realtime Venus Photo Gallery


Realtime Comet Photo Gallery


  All Sky Fireball Network

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 Jan. 15, 2014, the network reported 6 fireballs.
(6 sporadics)

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]

On Jan. 14, 2014, the network reported 12 fireballs.
(12 sporadics)

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]

  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 January 17, 2014 there were 1451 potentially hazardous asteroids.
Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
Asteroid
Date(UT)
Miss Distance
Size
2014 AE51
Jan 14
6.1 LD
34 m
2007 SJ
Jan 21
18.9 LD
1.9 km
2012 BX34
Jan 28
9.6 LD
13 m
2006 DP14
Feb 10
6.2 LD
730 m
2000 EM26
Feb 18
8.8 LD
195 m
2000 EE14
Mar 6
64.6 LD
1.8 km
2003 QQ47
Mar 26
49.9 LD
1.4 km
1995 SA
Apr 2
73.1 LD
1.4 km
2000 HD24
Apr 4
42.2 LD
1.3 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 web links
NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
  The official U.S. government space weather bureau
Atmospheric Optics
  The first place to look for information about sundogs, pillars, rainbows and related phenomena.
Solar Dynamics Observatory
  Researchers call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO is the most advanced solar observatory ever.
STEREO
  3D views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial Relations Observatory
Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
  Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO.
Daily Sunspot Summaries
  from the NOAA Space Environment Center
Heliophysics
  the underlying science of space weather
Space Weather Alerts
   
  more links...
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