COMING SOON! VENUS-JUPITER CONJUNCTION: For the past few weeks, Jupiter has been hiding behind the sun. In November, the giant planet will emerge from the glare and race into the pre-dawn sky for a spectacular conjunction with Venus. At closest approach on Nov. 13th, the two bright worlds will be a breathtaking 0.3 degrees apart--so close that you can hide them together behind an outstretched pinky finger. Mark your calendar. Sky maps: Nov. 12, 13, 14.
HERE COMES THE SOLAR WIND: A hole has opened in the sun's atmosphere, and it is spewing a stream of solar wind toward Earth. Estimated time of arrival: Nov. 2nd. This image, based on data from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, shows the structure facing Earth on Oct. 30th:
This is a "coronal hole," a region where the sun's magnetic field opens up and allows solar wind to escape. Gaseous material is emerging faster than 600 km/s. The southern orientation of the crack could cause the solar wind stream to hit Earth off-center, mitigating its effect; although this is not yet certain.
NOAA forecasters say that the leading edge of the solar wind stream may contain a shockwave-like structure called a CIR (co-rotating interaction region). CIRs are transition zones between slow- and fast-moving solar wind. They contain density gradients and enhanced magnetic fields that often do a good job sparking auroras. As a result, Arctic sky watchers might see Northern Lights mixed with nearly-full moonlight on Nov. 2-3. Free: Aurora Alerts.
THE SPACE PUMPKIN: It's the spookiest space weather balloon mission ever. On Oct. 22, 2017, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a pumpkin to the edge of space. The Jack O'Lantern flew to a record-setting altitude of 107,284 feet before parachuting back to Earth, landing on the verge of Death Valley National Park.
To make this happen, the students completely redesigned their usual space weather balloon payload, replacing the cosmic ray capsule with a pumpkin. A test flight on Oct. 15th verified the operation of the pumpkin's flight computer, camera, and GPS trackers. After making a few improvements, the stage was set for the Great Pumpkin Balloon Launch on Oct. 22nd. The space pumpkin reached a GPS-verified altitude of 107,284 feet, which we believe is a record. Not only was this flight tons of fun, it taught us how to operate our hardware outside the warm confines of our usual payload. These new capabilities will surely come in handy as we brainstorm new and exciting missions in the future. Happy Halloween!
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All proceeds support hands-on STEM education
A FAR-OUT CHRISTMAS GIFT: On Sept. 10, 2017, giant sunspot AR2673 exploded, producing an X8-class solar flare. The powerful blast accelerated a stream of electrons and protons toward Earth. By the time the particles arrived, this crystal pyramid was waiting for them at the top of Earth's atmosphere:
What was it doing up there? It hitched a ride onboard a space weather balloon, launched by the students of Earth to Sky Calculus to measure radiation from the flare. In addition to the pyramid (flown for fundraising), the balloon's payload carried an array of X-ray/gamma-ray detectors, cameras, temperature/pressure sensors, GPS altimeters and, of course, extra pyramids.
You can have one for $119.95. Each pyramid comes with a unique gift card showing the crystal 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
All proceeds support hands-on STEM education