WARTIME SPACE WEATHER: A SUNSPOT DETONATES NAVAL MINES Researchers studying declassified Naval records have found evidence that a big sunspot may have caused dozens or perhaps even thousands of naval mines to explode off the coast of Vietnam in 1972. The solar storms of August '72 were already legendary at NASA. These new findings suggest that the event might have been even more potent than previously thought. Get the full story.
THE SOLAR WIND HAS ARRIVED: As predicted, Earth is entering a stream of solar wind flowing from a hole in the sun's atmosphere. First contact on Nov. 10th sparked faint but colorful polar auroras in the southern hemisphere, shown here in a photo taken by Ian Griffin on New Zealand's Otago Peninsula:
"As I set up my cameras to record some star trails over Hoopers Inlet tonight (the southern cross reaches its lowest point just after sunset here in NZ at this time of year) I noticed a glow in the South," reports Griffin. "Over the next hour or so a beautiful display of the aurora australis daubed the sky in pastel colours. You can see this is an aurora australis by the reflection of the southern cross and pointers in the water!"
More Southern and Northern Lights are in the offing as the solar wind envelops Earth's magnetic field. High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras throughout the weekend. Free: Aurora Alerts.
PURPLE HEART SPACE PENDANT: Nothing says "I Love You" like a heart-shaped pendant from the edge of space. Last week, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus flew an array of cosmic ray sensors to the stratosphere onboard a giant helium balloon. This purple heart went along for the ride:
You can have it for $129.95. The students are selling these pendants as a fund-raiser for their cosmic ray monitoring program. They make great anniversary, birthday and Christmas gifts. Each pendant comes with a greeting card showing the jewelry in flight and telling the story of its journey to the stratosphere and back again.
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