SOLAR WIND UPDATE: Today, solar wind is howling around Earth, reaching speeds of 550 km/s (1.2 million mph). But... The wind is so thin and weakly magnetized that it is not sparking geomagnetic storms. The Labor Day Storm of 2019 is over. Aurora alerts: SMS Text
THE LABOR DAY STORM OF 2019: It happened just as predicted. On August 31st, a stream of solar wind hit Earth's magnetic field, sparking the strongest geomagnetic storm of 2019. Episodes of G2-class storming ignited bright auroras over both poles visible even in Arctic twilight. Dmitry Rak photographed the display from the Barents Sea coast near Teriberka, Russia:
"The aurora borealis mixed with the colors of sunset and dawn as the storm lasted the whole night of Aug. 31st to Sept. 1st," reports Rak. "The most delicious auroras floated over us and headed south, so we were able to capture only part of this celestial extravaganza. Nevertheless, we were very satisfied with what we saw."
Thousands of miles away in Wyoming, the sky and the ground both exploded:
"I got several images of the auroras over the geysers in Yellowstone National Park," says photographer Jean Clark. "What a great night!"
At the peak of the storm, which lasted throughout the Labor Day weekend, auroras spilled across the Canadian border into multiple US states including Wisconsin, Michigan, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Maine and even Midwestern airspace.
Did you miss the show? The same stream of solar wind will return on Sept. 27th when the sun has spun once on its axis, directing the gaseous firehose at Earth again. Mark your calendar! Aurora alerts: SMS Text
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THE SPACE PEARL: It's the first pearl in the stratosphere. On Aug. 19, 2019, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a cosmic ray balloon to the edge of space, 104,002 ft high. This sterling silver pearl necklace went along for the ride:
You can have it for $169.95. The students are selling these pearls to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each cultured "space pearl" comes with greeting card showing the necklace in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space and back again. These make great birthday and Christmas gifts.
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All sales support hands-on STEM education