FARSIDE SUNSPOT: NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft is monitoring a possible sunspot on the farside of the sun. It could be the source of an impressive farside CME detected by SOHO on March 26th. In a few days this active region will rotate onto the Earthside of the sun, giving us a clear view of its structure and potential for future explosions. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
ISS LUNAR TRANSIT: Astrophotography isn't easy. So much can go wrong. Which makes a video like this extra-special:
"Everything went right," says astrophotographer Szabolcs Nagy of London, England. "I was filming the southern region of Moon when the International Space Station (ISS) flew by. The seeing was good, and the timing was perfect."
Nagy planned this event for more than two weeks. "I saw the forecast on Transit-Finder.com, and rented a car to drive to Chiswick where the transit would be visible. I was aiming for a spot where the ISS would just 'kiss' the Moon's southern limb."
When the gleaming structure of the space station appeared, racing along the Moon's cratered edge at the precise time and place he hoped for, Nagy cried out with joy. His reaction is documented in a Youtube video of the observing session.
"After the photpography was finished, I tried some unique editing, in which I focused on the Space Station as a fixed point and allowed the lunar surface to move in the background," explains Nagy. "This changes the whole perspective. I hope you like it just as much as I do" (We do.)
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RARE MR. SPOCK MUG: It's the logical way to wake up in the morning: Coffee in a rare Mr. Spock mug. On March 21, 2021, this unique ceramic collector's item flew to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon:
You cannot buy these mugs anywhere on the internet--not even Amazon. But you can have one from Earth to Sky Calculus for $170.10. That's the serial number of the Enterprise divided by 10. The mug comes with a greeting card showing the item in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space and back again. It's a great gift for any Trekkie!
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
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