ALL QUIET ALERT: If you're a space weather forecaster, the next three days would be a good time for a vacation. Solar and geomagnetic activity are low, and expected to remain so through June 30th. Only if sunspot AR2835 wakes up will the outlook change. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
WHY ISN'T THIS SUNSPOT FLARING? Sunspot AR2835 is big, new, and just experienced a significant growth spurt. So why isn't it flaring? The answer lies in this magnetic map from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
Like all sunspots, AR2835 has a north pole ("+") and a south pole ("-"). The expanse between the two poles explains the quiet. In AR2835, there is very little mixing of green and yellow; that is, the magnetic polarities are cleanly separated. Solar flares tend to occur in sunspots where "+" and "-" bump together in many places, resulting in magnetic reconnection. AR2835 isn't like that. Until this changes, the forecast calls for quiet. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
3 ASTRONAUTS AND A SPACE STATION: China's new space station is now occupied. Astronauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo are onboard, preparing the outpost for expansion. On June 24th the crowded station flew over Manorville, New York, where Philip Smith snapped this picture:
"This was the view through my 14-inch telescope as the Chinese space station soared almost overhead," says Smith. "I did not see the solar panels in this pass in the way I hoped, but I will keep trying!"
The astronauts arrived on June 17th for a 3 month mission to bring the Tianhe-1 core module into service. When they are finished, the station will be ready for more. China plans to launch two more modules and link them to the Tianhe-1, turning the existing 16.6m-long, 4.2m-wide cylinder into a Mir-class facility. The final product will weigh nearly 70 tons with living quarters, science labs and even a Hubble-class telescope to view the cosmos.
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
RARE SCOTTY MUG (COLLECTOR'S ITEM): There's nothing like morning coffee in a cup from space. On June 3, 2021, this rare ceramic Montgomery Scott mug flew to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon. At the apex of the flight, it floated 101,243 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California:
You can have it for $170.10. That's the serial number of the Enterprise divided by 10. The students are selling Star Trek mugs to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each one holds 16 oz. of steaming hot Raktajino (Klingon coffee) and comes with a greeting card showing the collector's item in flight.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
Realtime Noctilucent Cloud Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter