M-CLASS SOLAR FLARE: Sunspot AR2941 erupted on Feb. 14th (1731 UT), producing an M1-class solar flare. A brief shortwave radio blackout followed the explosion after X-rays ionized the top of Earth's atmosphere. Ham radio operators and aviators in the Americas may have noticed unusual propagation effects at frequencies below 20 MHz. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
A VALENTINE FROM THE MOON: You may have heard of the Lunar X. Once a month when the sun rises over Crater Werner in the Moon's southern hemisphere, sunlight floods the region's high terrain and makes a luminous criss-cross shape. Peter Rosén of Stockholm, Sweden, was looking for the X on Feb. 8th when he found four other letters as well:
"After I finished processing my images, I noticed that I had also caught the lunar letters L, O, V and E," says Rosén.
Like the Lunar X, these additional characters are formed by sunlight grazing the rims of craters on the terminator of the quarter moon. Determined pareidoliac observers might be able to find an entire alphabet in the Moon's cratered terrain. For today, though, four letters is just enough.
"The Moon and I wish you a very happy Valentine's Day," says Rosén.
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A DALEK FROM THE EDGE OF SPACE: It's the ultimate gift for a Dr. Who fan: A Dalek from the edge of space. On Jan. 16, 2022, this Funko Pop! original hitched a ride to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $134.95. The Dalek comes with a greeting card showing the evil cyborg in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space and back again. Also included is the original Funko Pop! box, making this a genuine collector's item.
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