GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH: NOAA forecasters say that G2-class geomagnetic storms are possible on Sept. 1-2 when a pair of CMEs hit (or at least graze) Earth's magnetic field. The first CME came from an M4.7-class solar flare on Aug. 28th. The second CME was hurled toward us by an erupting magnetic filament later the same day. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
SEETHING SUNSPOT: Big sunspot AR2860 is seething with activity. This one-hour movie taken by Maximilian Teodorescu of Magurele, Romania, shows multiple arcs of hot plasma shooting up and down the length of the sunspot group:
"There were lots of small flares during the short time I observed the sunspot on Aug. 30th," says Teodorescu. "It was quite a sight."
All these small, mostly C-class, flares may be helping the sunspot "blow off steam," forestalling the buildup to a more ferocious explosion. Don't count on quiet, though. AR2680 has a 'beta-gamma' magnetic field that harbors energy for strong M-class eruptions. It could easily blow its top before it rotates off the Earth-facing side of the sun later this week. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
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STERLING SILVER HUMMINGBIRD: This hummingbird has touched space. The sterling silver pendant hitched a ride to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon. At the apex of the flight, it floated 111,202 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California:
You can have it for $142.95. The students are selling hummingbird pendants to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each one comes with a greeting card showing the hummingbird in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space. It makes an out-of-this-world birthday, anniversary, or Christmas gift!
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