CHANCE OF MINOR STORMS: A stream of solar wind flowing from a southern hole in the sun's atmosphere is approaching Earth. NOAA forecasters say there is a chance of minor G1-class geomagnetic storms when the stream arrives on Feb. 20th. A co-rotating interaction region (CIR) traveling just ahead of the stream improves the chances that a storm will actually occur. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
HERE IT COMES: The source of last week's huge farside explosion is moving closer to the Earthside of the sun. NASA's STEREO-A spacecraft is stationed just behind the sun's eastern limb, and it has caught sight of a large ultraviolet hotspot approaching the visible edge of the sun:
STEREO-A does not have a white light telescope, so we cannot know for sure that the "hotspot" is actually a sunspot. But it almost certainly is.
Whatever it is, it's big enough to affect the way the surface of the sun vibrates. Researchers at Stanford University are using helioseismology to map the farside of the sun. They've detected something big at the same location:
The timing and location of this active region suggest that it is old sunspot AR2936--the same sunspot that brought down multiple Starlink satelites in early February. It has grown during its transit around the farside of the sun, and could pose an even greater threat when it returns in a few days. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
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A DRAGONFLY IN THE STRATOSPHERE: Are you looking for a far-out gift? Consider the Sterling Silver Space Dragonfly. On Jan 12th, this winged pendant flew 113,451 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, hitching a ride onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray balloon:
You can have it for $172.95. The dragonfly's heart is a Celtic love knot, and its wings are decorated with blue marquise crystals--all plated with 14k white gold. It's an exquisite ensemble for birthdays, anniversaries or any other romantic occasion.
The students are selling dragonfly pendants to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each one comes with a greeting card showing the pendant in flight and telling the story of its trip to the stratosphere and back again.
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