OLD VENUS SPACECRAFT TO CRASH INTO EARTH: In March 1972, Russia launched a spacecraft to Venus. The Venera probe (since renamed "Kosmos 482") never made it out of Earth orbit. A new analysis by Dr. Marco Langbroek suggests that orbital decay is bringing the probe back to Earth. "This is a lander built to withstand atmospheric reentry [on Venus]," notes Langbroek, so it "will make for an interesting reentry sometime between 2024 and 2026." [Full story]
ACTIVE SUNSPOT: A storm is swirling around sunspot AR3014. This morning in Romania, astronomer Maximilian Teodorescu made a 45 minute movie of the sun's atmosphere above the huge sunspot. It is literally seething:
"I caught a pretty big M-class solar flare," says Teodorescu. In addition, dark filaments of magnetism can be seen snaking through the region as lesser flares illuminate the interstices. The tumult overlies of the biggest sunspots of Solar Cycle 25 with an unstable 'beta-gamma-delta' magnetic field that harbors energy for powerful X-flares. Stay tuned. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text
more images: from Pepe Manteca of Barcelona, Spain; from Philippe Tosi of Nîmes, France; from Sylvain Weiller of Jerusalem, Israel; from Andreas Spiering of Berg, Germany; from Alexander Golitschek of Darmstadt, Germany
JUMPING PLASMA FOUNTAINS: Today, a massive jet of plasma shot out of the sun's southwestern limb. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the eruption:
The base of the jet is twice as wide as Earth, and its apex is 10 times as tall. The towering plume almost certainly propelled a CME away from the sun (confirmation awaits fresh data from SOHO coronagraphs). It won't hit Earth.
What caused the eruption? First, take a look at this image and, then, replay the movie. Sunspot AR3007 launched a 'bullet' of plasma, which arced over the edge of the sun, landed, and made a really big splash. The same thing happens at Disney World.
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"I LOVE YOU FOREVER" MOONSTONE PENDANT: Are you looking for a far-out gift? Consider the "I Love You Forever" Moonstone. This one hitched a ride to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research ballooin on May 13, 2022:
You can have it for $162.95. The moonstone's sterling silver infinity wrap is inscribed with the words "I love you forever." It makes a great anniversary or birthday gift. The moonstone comes with a greeting card showing the pendant in flight, telling the story of its trip to the edge of space and back again.
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