UPDATE--A CME IS COMING, MAYBE: NOAA analysts have modeled the trajectory of yesterday's CME, described below. Their conclusion: It could deliver a glancing blow to Earth's magnetic field on Aug. 20th. Minor geomagnetic storms and high-latitude auroras are possible when the CME arrives. Aurora alerts: SMS Text
A SLOW-MOTION SOLAR FLARE: You know an explosion is powerful when it lasts for two hours. Yesterday, Aug. 16th (1726 UT), a B1-class solar flare took even longer to unfold. The 2.5 hr blast sent a powerful shock wave rippling through the sun's atmosphere, shown here in a time-lapse movie from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
No sunspot was involved. The explosion occured in a spotless region of the sun's southern hemisphere. A magnetic filament snapped, hurling debris far and wide. Some of that debris formed the core of a coronal mass ejection (CME), which has escaped the sun and is now billowing into the Solar System.
Coronagraphs onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) are tracking the CME:
Clearly, the storm cloud is not heading directly for Earth. However, NOAA models of the CME's trajectory suggest it could deliver a glancing blow to Earth's magnetic field on August 20th. Minor geomagnetic storms and high-latitude auroras are possible when the CME arrives. Stay tuned. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
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CHEWBACCA IN THE STRATOSPHERE: No collection of Star Wars bobbleheads is complete without a Wookie. For those of you who feel the same way, we present Chewbacca in the stratosphere. On Aug. 14th, Chewie hitched a ride onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray balloon, flying 117,454 feet above Earth's surface:
You can have him for $119.95. The students are selling this furry sidekick of Han Solo to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each bobblehead comes with a greeting card showing the item in flight and describing its journey to the edge of space and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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