SOLAR MINIMUM DOES NOT GIVE UP EASILY: Last month began with a profusion of sunspots--a clear sign that Solar Cycle 25 was coming to life. But Solar Minimum does not give up easily. Today marks the second straight week of blank suns; 14 days without sunspots. New solar cycles often sputter at the beginning, and this is why Solar Minimum conditions are, once again, in effect. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
GEOMAGNETIC RAIN OVER FINLAND: Last night, a special type of aurora appeared over Finland. It was a "corona"--a form of Northern Lights that rains down from directly overhead. Rayann Elzein happened to be looking straight up when the outbreak occurred:
"This corona 'exploded' overhead and continued blinking and displaying fast needles for several minutes!" says Elzein. "What a fantastic and unexpected night up here in Utsjoki!"
The display coincided with a sudden negative dip in BsubZ. In other words, a crack opened in Earth's polar magnetic field. Solar wind poured in to fuel the display.
More coronas are in the offing. During weeks around equinoxes, cracks in Earth's magnetic field become common--a phenomenon known as the Russell-McPherron effect. With the northern autumnal equinox less than three weeks away, the space weather forecast calls for geomagnetic rain. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
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THE MYSTERY OF MAMMATUS: On Sept 1st, a thunderstorm passed through Fort Frances, Ontario, Canada. As it departed, something amazing happened to the sky. "My wife exclaimed 'I feel like I'm on a fantasy movie set!'" says eyewitness Lauri Kangas. "It really was surreal." This is what they saw:
These are mammatus clouds. Named for their resemblance to a cow's underbelly, they often appear around the unstable edges of thunderstorms. Researchers have called mammatus clouds an "intriguing enigma," because they have not been studied as much as other clouds. There is much uncertainty about how they form.
Photographers and artists have long valued mammatus clouds for their strangely beautiful appearance. Indeed, Gedzelman (1989) notes that the pendulous lobes appear in paintings as early as the 1500s. Mammatus clouds often go unnoticed because potential observers have been chased indoors by the rain. If you are one of them, go back outside when the downpour stops; you could witness a beautiful mystery in the sky.
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CAPT. KIRK BOBBLEHEAD (COLLECTOR'S ITEM): To support their crowdfunded research program, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus have launched James T. Kirk to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray balloon. Note the moon over Kirk's shoulder in this photo taken 36 km (118,100 ft) above Earth's surface:
You can have him for $170.10. The price is the serial number of the Enterprise, NCC1701, divided by 10. The students are selling Kirk to buy more helium! He comes with a greeting card showing the high-quality resin bobblehead in flight and telling the story of his journey to the stratosphere and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
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