SUBSIDING GEOMAGNETIC STORM: A co-rotating interaction region (CIR) hit Earth's magnetic field today, May 27th, sparking a minor G1-class geomagnetic storm. CIRs are transition zones between fast- and slow-moving solar wind streams. They contain shock waves that do a good job rattling Earth's magnetic field. After peaking with a K-index of 5, the storm is now subsiding.. Geomagnetic storm alerts: SMS Text
NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS OVER SCOTLAND: Noctilucent clouds (NLCs) are spilling out of the Arctic Circle. Andy Stables photographed them last night from Glendale on the Isle of Skye, Scotland:
"The first NLCs of the season showed up at 00:45 UT on May 27th," says Stables. "Zoom into this full-sized shot to see the fine wave structures that so often appear in NLCs."
NLC season has definitely begun. In the northern hemisphere, early-summer plumes of water vapor are drifting up to the edge of space where water molecules stick to specks of meteor smoke. The resulting ice crystals form noctilucent clouds. NASA's AIM spacecraft spotted the first NLCs of the 2022 season near the North Pole on May 22nd. Now people outside the Arctic Circle are seeing them, too. The clouds should intensify and spread to lower latitudes in the weeks ahead. Stay tuned for electric blue.
Realtime Noctilucent Cloud Photo Gallery
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A 'GREEN GHOST' OVER TIBET: Three years ago, a photographer in Oklahoma discovered the first "Green Ghost"--a patch of verdant light that appears when powerful sprites strike the top of Earth's atmosphere. Now the phenomenon has been detected in Tibet as well. Soheil Esy was trekking through the Himalaya on May 19th when this spectcular wall of sprites lit up the night sky:
"This happened on my 13th night of star chasing in Tibet, carrying 4 camera stands and lenses with multiple focal lengths," says Esy. "I have always believed that you should give yourself completely to nature, wait and prepare unceasingly, and the sky will reward you with more than you can imagine. My patience was definitely rewarded."
"The outbreak was triggered by strong lightning over China, perhaps hundreds of kilometers away," he continues. "We could also see ripples of red airglow surrounding the sprites. It was truly the fireworks of the Universe."
After one outburst subsided, Esy photographed a green afterglow--the Green Ghost:
Researchers are still learning about this phenomenon. A leading theory holds that Green Ghosts appear when the tops of strong sprites hit the airglow layer ~90 km above Earth's surface. Oxygen atoms briefly glow green, marking the location of the impact.
"I believe this could be the first Green Ghost sighted over China," says Esy, "and the image could provide valuable data for research."
Realtime Sprite Photo Gallery
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CAPT. KIRK BEER COZY: Boldly going where no beer has gone before, this Capt. Kirk beer cozy flew to the edge of space on May 21, 2022. It hitched a ride onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon. Here it is parachuting back to Earth from an altitude of 109,888 feet:
You can have it for $97.95. The students are selling beer cozies (beer not included) to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. They make great Father's Day and birthday gifts. Each one comes with greeting card showing the cozy in flight, and telling the story of its trip to the stratosphere and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
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Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
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