SUNSET PLANET SHOW: The crescent Moon just visited Venus; now it's Mercury's turn. Step outside at sunset and look west. The Moon and Mercury are converging in the constellation Taurus. Sylvain Weiller photographed their approach this evening in Jerusalem, Israel:
"It was an incredible view," says Weiller. "Wow!"
Mercury is currently having its best evening apparition of 2021. It is relatively far from the sun and easy to see in evening twilight. Now imagine the slender crescent Moon hanging right beside it. Photo-op! Submit your images here. Sky map: May 13.
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
CME SPARKS STRONG GEOMAGNETIC STORM: A coronal mass ejection (CME) hit Earth's magnetic field during the early hours of May 12th, sparking the strongest geomagnetic storm of young Solar Cycle 25. "Very bright and active waves of aurora danced with morning twilight," reports John David McKinnon of Alberta, Canada, who photographed the display from Sandhill Crane Marsh:
The G3-class disturbance lasted 6 full hours. Only one thing stopped sky watchers in Europe and many US states from seeing the auroras: The sun came up. Daylight blotted out an otherwise memorable display.
The storm is subsiding now, with only a slight chance of minor G1-class storms on May 13th as Earth exits the CME's wake. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
WHISKEY STONES FROM SPACE: It's the gift for the person who has everything: Whisky Stones from Space. These granite cubes have experienced the cold of the stratosphere, more than 50 degrees below zero! Put them in your cup for an truly out of this world drink:
You can have a set of 9 cubes for $99.95 (glass not included). The students of Earth to Sky Calculus are selling whiskey stones to support their cosmic ray monitoring program. The ones picture above flew to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon on April 23, 2021, reaching an altitude of 97,543 feet.
Refrigerated whiskey stones cool a drink without diluting it, solving the problem of ordinary melting ice cubes. They make great Father's Day and birthday gifts. All stones come with a greeting card showing the cubes in flight.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter