THE STORM IS OVER: The Great Geomagnetic Storm of Sept. 8, 2017, is over. Our planet's magnetic field is quiet again and auroras have retreated to their polar habitat. Isolated periods of minor G1-class storming are possible this weekend as Earth exits the wake of the instigating CME, but these storms would likely be short-lived and not expected to spark significant auroras. Free: Aurora Alerts
SOUTHERN LIGHTS: The last gasp of this week's fading severe geomagnetic storm produced a beautiful curtain of yellow auroras over New Zealand. Mathew Hayde photographed the display on Sept. 9th from St Clair Beach in Dunedin:
"Bright moonlight provided a unique opportunity to include foreground elements that would usually be in silhouette," he points out. "It was a wonderful time to be at the beach!"
NORTHERN LIGHTS INVADE THE USA: During Friday's severe geomagnetic storm, auroras were seen in at least 18 US states including Alaska, Maine, Connecticut, New York, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Illinois, Minnesota, Delaware, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Iowa, Maryland, Virginia, Vermont, and South Dakota. Incredibly, Northern Lights descended as far south as Arkansas. Brian Emfinger sends this picture from Morillton, AR:
"I set up my camera about an hour after sunset and immediately recognized some reddish aurora with some curtains," says Emfinger. "From the first picture, the aurora was clearly fading and within 15 minutes was completely gone."
ROSE QUARTZ CRYSTAL ECLIPSE PENDANTS: On Aug. 21st during the Great American Solar Eclipse, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched 11 space weather balloons from the path of totality. They aimed to photograph the Moon's shadow from the stratosphere--and they succeeded. As a fundraiser, some of the balloons carried jewelry. Here is a rose quartz crystal pendant entering the Moon's shadow more than 90,000 feet above the Malheur National Forest in eastern Oregon:
During the 2.5 hour flight, the pendants were wrapped in the Moon's shadow for more than two minutes, experiencing a spooky darkness colder than -50 C.
You can have one for $149.95. Each crystal pendant comes with a unique gift card showing the jewelry passing through the Moon's shadow and floating at the top of Earth's atmosphere. The interior of the card tells the story of the flight and confirms that this gift has been to the edge of space and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
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