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THE STORM IS NOT OVER: A CME hit Earth's magnetic field on May 10th, sparking the biggest geomagnetic storm in more than 20 years--an extreme category G5 event. It is subsiding now (currently category G2), but it is not over. More CMEs are expected to hit Earth's magnetic field during the next 24-48 hours, and they could push the storm back to extreme levels. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
AURORAS IN FLORIDA, PUERTO RICO, MEXICO: Many people around the world have just seen auroras for the first time in their lives. This includes residents of the Florida Keys. Ron Jarrell sends this photo from Big Pine Key at latitude 24.7° N:
"The auroras were so beautiful!" says Jarrell, who needed no more than his smartphone to photograph the display.
Seeing auroras in the Florida Keys is extraordinary, but the light show didn't stop there. Sky watchers saw the sky turn red across the Carribean. These pictures were taken from the southeast coast of Puerto Rico at latitude 18.1° N:
Photo credits: (left) Carlos Rolling of Hormigueros; (right) Adriel Jarell of Cabo Rojo
"The last events on record when auroras were seen from Puerto Rico were in 1859 and 1921, so tonight was an historic event", says Eddie Irizarry from the Sociedad de Astronomia del Caribe (Astronomical Society of the Caribbean).
Auroras also appeared in Mexico. René Saade photographed the display looking north from the beach in Mazatlan, Sinaloa at latitude 23.2° N:
"This is not something you see every day--auroras and palm trees," says Saade. "Amazing!"
The low latitude of these sightings would seem to place this storm among the greatest aurora displays of the past 500 years. Stay tuned for more information on this topic when the storm is finally over a few days from now. Meanwhile sign up for aurora alerts!
Readers, did you photograph the auroras at low latitudes? Please submit your photos here.
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
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ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT CME IS COMING: Giant sunspot AR3664 unleashed another X-flare today (May 11th @ 0139 UT)--its strongest yet. The X5.8-class explosion produced a significant CME with an Earth-directed component:
The snowy speckles in this SOHO coronagraph movie are caused by energetic particles hitting the spacecraft's camera. The particles are being accelerated toward the spacecraft (and toward Earth) by shock waves in the emerging CME. They are a sign that it is a potent storm cloud with an Earth-directed component.
This CME could reach Earth on May 13th, adding new power to the ongoing geomagnetic storm. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
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18K GOLD TOTAL ECLIPSE PENDANT: This pendant has touched the shadow of the Moon. On April 8, 2024, during a total eclipse of the sun in Texas, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched it to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon. Floating more than 118,110 feet high, the locket spent 3 minutes and 45 seconds wrapped in lunar shadow:
You can have it for $199.95. The 18K gold-plated locket is inscribed with the words "I love you to the Moon and back," and opens to hold a personal photo or other small item. It comes with a greeting card showing the locket in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space during the total eclipse.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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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 May 09, 2024, the network reported 7 fireballs.
(5 sporadics, 2 eta Aquarids)
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 May 11, 2024 there were 2349 potentially hazardous asteroids.
 |
Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters: | Asteroid | Date(UT) | Miss Distance | Velocity (km/s) | Diameter (m) |
| 2024 HL2 | 2024-May-06 | 7.6 LD | 13.4 | 26 |
| 2024 HM2 | 2024-May-06 | 17.4 LD | 25 | 51 |
| 2024 HE2 | 2024-May-06 | 3.1 LD | 12.1 | 22 |
| 2024 JP3 | 2024-May-06 | 12.5 LD | 6.9 | 12 |
| 2024 JF | 2024-May-06 | 1.2 LD | 11.7 | 7 |
| 2024 JR1 | 2024-May-07 | 0.8 LD | 13 | 10 |
| 2024 JO2 | 2024-May-07 | 1.7 LD | 14.4 | 9 |
| 2024 JO10 | 2024-May-08 | 8.2 LD | 12.4 | 36 |
| 2024 JX1 | 2024-May-08 | 5 LD | 20 | 21 |
| 2024 JD | 2024-May-08 | 0.7 LD | 3.3 | 11 |
| 2024 JG1 | 2024-May-08 | 10.5 LD | 12.3 | 24 |
| 2024 JL3 | 2024-May-08 | 1 LD | 18.5 | 19 |
| 2024 JM1 | 2024-May-09 | 10.9 LD | 10.4 | 26 |
| 2024 JX8 | 2024-May-09 | 8.2 LD | 7.1 | 14 |
| 2024 JZ | 2024-May-09 | 11 LD | 25.1 | 69 |
| 2024 JT3 | 2024-May-09 | 0.1 LD | 10.9 | 5 |
| 2024 JN3 | 2024-May-09 | 0.8 LD | 13 | 15 |
| 2024 JR3 | 2024-May-09 | 2.4 LD | 19.1 | 19 |
| 2024 JF8 | 2024-May-10 | 17.2 LD | 8.3 | 24 |
| 2021 JG9 | 2024-May-10 | 16.9 LD | 16.1 | 32 |
| 2016 FT14 | 2024-May-10 | 19.9 LD | 5.9 | 39 |
| 2024 JK1 | 2024-May-10 | 6.9 LD | 9.7 | 19 |
| 2024 JB9 | 2024-May-10 | 11.3 LD | 8 | 18 |
| 2024 JV6 | 2024-May-10 | 1.6 LD | 9.4 | 8 |
| 2024 JT11 | 2024-May-11 | 9.4 LD | 7.7 | 21 |
| 2024 JN | 2024-May-12 | 4.4 LD | 3.3 | 8 |
| 2024 JB2 | 2024-May-13 | 11.6 LD | 17.7 | 80 |
| 2024 JQ12 | 2024-May-13 | 4.7 LD | 3 | 7 |
| 2024 JP10 | 2024-May-13 | 18.8 LD | 25.3 | 67 |
| 2015 KJ19 | 2024-May-14 | 15.8 LD | 23.1 | 112 |
| 2014 WF6 | 2024-May-14 | 7.2 LD | 18.9 | 47 |
| 2024 JW6 | 2024-May-14 | 5.7 LD | 8.6 | 18 |
| 2021 JN10 | 2024-May-15 | 14.7 LD | 13.4 | 33 |
| 2021 JJ | 2024-May-15 | 16.8 LD | 5.7 | 28 |
| 2024 JG6 | 2024-May-17 | 11.2 LD | 7.4 | 21 |
| 2022 WN2 | 2024-May-17 | 13.7 LD | 5.5 | 6 |
| 2024 JG8 | 2024-May-17 | 6.2 LD | 6.1 | 15 |
| 2024 JQ1 | 2024-May-18 | 5.7 LD | 3 | 13 |
| 2024 JK8 | 2024-May-19 | 6 LD | 9.8 | 16 |
| 2024 JD1 | 2024-May-20 | 19 LD | 5.5 | 27 |
| 2015 WO1 | 2024-May-20 | 7.4 LD | 15.6 | 86 |
| 2024 JP12 | 2024-May-21 | 11 LD | 6.3 | 18 |
| 2019 VB5 | 2024-May-21 | 7.8 LD | 6.3 | 2 |
| 2024 JZ6 | 2024-May-23 | 14.6 LD | 13.8 | 295 |
| 2024 HP | 2024-May-23 | 15.5 LD | 7.7 | 203 |
| 2024 HP2 | 2024-May-25 | 5.8 LD | 2.3 | 20 |
| 2024 JY1 | 2024-May-26 | 17.5 LD | 10.3 | 57 |
| 2008 LD | 2024-May-28 | 7.7 LD | 4.5 | 6 |
| 2021 LV | 2024-May-29 | 12 LD | 15.5 | 9 |
| 2024 JG | 2024-May-29 | 8.7 LD | 7.4 | 28 |
| 2024 JA3 | 2024-May-30 | 6.2 LD | 8.5 | 36 |
| 2008 XH | 2024-May-31 | 13.8 LD | 14.7 | 102 |
| 2024 JP1 | 2024-Jun-01 | 17.9 LD | 4.7 | 24 |
| 2024 JC1 | 2024-Jun-01 | 15.1 LD | 4.8 | 30 |
| 1998 KY26 | 2024-Jun-01 | 12 LD | 5.3 | 25 |
| 2016 JC6 | 2024-Jun-01 | 19.9 LD | 7.1 | 188 |
| 2008 YN2 | 2024-Jun-05 | 10.5 LD | 7.7 | 20 |
| 2021 LW3 | 2024-Jun-06 | 9.7 LD | 9.8 | 86 |
| 2024 CR9 | 2024-Jun-11 | 19.2 LD | 7.4 | 447 |
| 2022 XC1 | 2024-Jun-12 | 16.5 LD | 6.5 | 21 |
| 2022 WW11 | 2024-Jun-17 | 19.7 LD | 14.4 | 15 |
| 2019 NJ | 2024-Jun-27 | 17.2 LD | 10.1 | 66 |
| 415029 | 2024-Jun-27 | 17.3 LD | 25.9 | 2304 |
| 2022 MM1 | 2024-Jun-28 | 7.8 LD | 10.9 | 39 |
| 2010 XN | 2024-Jun-28 | 14.1 LD | 11.3 | 52 |
| 2022 HD1 | 2024-Jun-29 | 17.3 LD | 7.2 | 63 |
| 2017 MB3 | 2024-Jun-30 | 5 LD | 6.5 | 30 |
| 2022 BY39 | 2024-Jul-02 | 13.2 LD | 3 | 4 |
| 2024 JV8 | 2024-Jul-05 | 1.3 LD | 1.3 | 20 |
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. 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 |
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