AURORAS FOR VALENTINE'S DAY? NOAA forecasters say that G1-class geomagnetic storms are possible on Feb. 13th and, especially, Feb. 14th, when a stream of is expected to hit Earth's magnetic field. The gaseous material is flowing faster than 500 km/s from an equatorial hole in the sun's atmosphere. Valentine's skies could be very romantic, indeed. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
INTERPLANETARY SHOCK WAVE SPARKS COLORFUL AURORAS: This was not in the forecast. An unexpected interplanetary shock wave hit Earth's magnetic field on Feb. 11th: data. The impact sparked a G1-class geomagnetic storm and some very colorful auroras inside the Arctic Circle:
"What an exceptional night to be outside here in the Finnish Lapland!" says photographer Rayann Elzein. "The auroras were so colorful with the greatest amount of red I have photographed since I started doing this 10 years ago."
The shock wave was a small one and may have been a faint CME that escaped detection when it left the sun some days ago. This will happen increasingly often as Solar Cycle 25 intensifies. The sun is puffing out CMEs, hurling them in all directions, and some will inevitably slip through cracks in the forecast. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
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VALENTINE'S GIFTS FROM THE EDGE OF SPACE: Does your sweetheart love space? Their perfect Valentine's gift may be in the Earth to Sky Store. All items in the store have flown to the edge of space on board cosmic ray research balloons. From now until Feb. 14th, everything is 10% off:
Each purchase comes with a greeting card showing the item in flight and telling the story of its journey to the stratosphere and back again. Don't forget to enter the coupon code "ILOVESPACE" for your Valentine's discount!
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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