Did you miss the aurora surprise of August 7th? Next time get a wake-up call: Spaceweather PHONE.
MARTIAN MISINFORMATION: Contrary to a wide-spread report, Mars will not appear as large as the full Moon this weekend. There is, however, something truly astronomical to draw you outdoors--a morning alignment of Venus and Saturn. Get the full story from Science@NASA.
BACKWARD SUNSPOT: Evidence continues to mount that the next solar cycle (Solar Cycle 24) is beginning. For the second time in a month, a backward sunspot has appeared. The first backward spot, sighted on July 31st, was tiny and fleeting. The latest, however, is big and sturdy, bipolar sunspot 905:
A SOHO magnetogram shows the magnetic poles of sunspot 905.
"Backward" means magnetically backward. Compared to how sunspots have been during the past 11-year solar cycle, the north and south magnetic poles of sunspot 905 are reversed. This is what happens when one solar cycle gives way to another--sunspots reverse polarity.
The onset of Solar Cycle 24 is big news, because the cycle is expected to be intense, but don't expect any big storms right away. Solar cycles take years to ramp up to full power. The next Solar Max is expected in 2010.
more images: from Pavol Rapavy of Rimavska Sobota, Slovakia; from Franck Charlier of Marines, Val d'Oise, France; from Cameran Ashraf of Claremont, CA; from Michel Hersen of Portland, Oregon.
FALSE DAWN: A few nights ago, photographer Rob Ratkowski stood atop the summit of the Haleakala volcano in Maui under a velvety, star-strewn sky. Daybreak was was only moments away when a pale glow lanced up from the eastern horizon--but it wasn't the sunrise, it was the Zodiacal Light:
Above: Zodiacal light silhouettes an observatory dome atop Maui's Haleakala volcano; a 3-minute exposure on 800-speed film by photographer Rob Ratkowski.
Zodiacal light is sunlight reflected from countless tiny grains of space dust orbiting the sun. These grains are sprinkled among the orbits of the planets, making a vast dusty pancake as big as the Solar System itself. For people in the Northern Hemisphere, the next two months are a great time to see Zodiacal light because the dust band is oriented nearly vertical at sunrise. Says, Ratkowski, "I was amazed how bright it really is, washing out the stars within its glow."