WEEKEND AURORA WATCH: Today, minor cracks are opening in Earth's magnetosphere as our planet passes through the wake of a CME that arrived on April 8th. The CME delivered a weak, glancing blow that did not initially spark a geomagnetic storm. Earth's transit through the CME's wake may, however, yield some high-latitude auroras on April 9th. Aurora alerts: SMS Text
WHAT'S HAPPENING ON FARSIDE OF THE SUN? There's a sunspot group on the farside of the sun so large it is altering the way the sun vibrates. Note the big dark spot in this helioseismic map of the sun:
Helioseismology is the study of acoustic waves on the sun. The sun is constantly vibrating as a result of its own inner boiling turmoil. It's quite a cacophany; helioseismologists liken it to the sound of a piano falling down stairs. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory can detect and decode these vibrations, which reveal structures like farside sunspots.
The dark region in today's helioseismic map could be old sunspot AR2975, which rotated onto the farside of the sun about a week ago. In late March it unleashed a fusillade of strong Earth-directed explosions including a Cannibal CME and an X-class solar flare. The active region appears to be still going strong. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text
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WHISKEY STONES FROM SPACE: It's the gift for the person who has everything: Whisky Stones from Space. These granite cubes have experienced the cold of the stratosphere, more than 50 degrees below zero! Put them in your cup for an truly out of this world drink:
You can have a set of 9 cubes for $109.95 (glass not included). The students of Earth to Sky Calculus are selling whiskey stones to support their cosmic ray monitoring program. The ones picture above flew to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon on April 23, 2021, reaching an altitude of 97,543 feet.
Refrigerated whiskey stones cool a drink without diluting it, solving the problem of ordinary melting ice cubes. They make great birthday and Father's Day gifts. All stones come with a greeting card showing the cubes in flight.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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