CME IMPACT FAILS TO PRODUCE A STORM: A coronal mass ejection (CME) hit Earth's magnetic field on Feb. 1st at 22:21 UT. Despite jolting magnetometers as far south as Hawaii (22 nT), the impact did not produce a geomagnetic storm. Not yet. NOAA forecasters caution that a storm is still possible on Feb. 2nd as Earth moves through the CME's magnetized wake. If so, it would probably be in the weakest category, G1.

On the other hand, if you're on a ship off the coast of Norway, you might not need a storm. "I had just finished a star gazing talk on the Viking Venus cruise ship when the CME arrived," reports Terence Murtagh. "The sky filled with fantastic fast moving dancing auroral arcs."

"The upper deck of the Viking Venus was silhouetted by a spectacular auroral band that wound around the whole sky," says Murtagh. "This is a handheld photo using an iPhone 13."

"Here's hoping for clear skies on Feb. 2nd [in case a real storm materializes]," he adds. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.

Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
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STERLING SILVER OPAL PENDANT: Valentine's Day less than 2 weeks away. Are you looking for a far-out? Consider the Sterling Silver Opal Pendant. Here it is hitching a ride on a cosmic ray research balloon 103,018 ft above the surface of Earth:

You can have it for $179.95. Wrapped in a sterling silver Celtic love knot, the opal is suspended from a matching 18-inch chain.  Each pendant comes with a greeting card showing the opal in flight, telling the story of its trip to the edge of space and back again.

Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
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