WEAK CME IMPACT PREDICTED: Yesterday, a magnetic filament on the sun erupted (movie), hurling a faint CME into space. NOAA forecasters say it could hit Earth's magnetic field on June 5th or 6th. Even weak CME strikes can cause geomagnetic storms, so there is a chance of minor G1-class storms when the CME arrives. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
REVERSED POLARITY SUNSPOT: A new and unusual sunspot has emerged in the sun's southern hemisphere: AR3027. It is a reversed-polarity sunspot; its magnetic field is backwards.
Above: A magnetic map of the sun's surface from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory.
According to Hale's Law, Solar Cycle 25 sunspots in the sun's southern hemisphere should have a +/- polarity. That's positive on the left, negative on the right. However, the magnetogram above shows the opposite. Sunspot AR3027 is breaking the law!
Studies show that about 3% of all sunspots violate Hale's Law. In some ways, reversed polarity sunspots act totally normal. For instance, they have the same lfespan and tend to be about the same size as normal sunspots.
In one key way they are different: According to a 1982 survey by Frances Tang of the Big Bear Solar Observatory, reversed polarity sunspots are more than twice as likely to develop complex magnetic fields, in which + and - are mixed together. Reversed polarity sunspots are therefore more likely to explode.
AR3027 could become a source of flares in the days ahead. Stay tuned! Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
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NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS: They're back. Noctilucent clouds (NLCs) have returned to the northern hemisphere. On June 1st, Harlan Thomas photographed the silvery ripples over Gayford Pond northeast of Calgary, Alberta:
"Yay!" says Thomas. "The first night of NLCs in Alberta for 2022 was very nice start to our season."
NLCs are Earth’s highest clouds. They form when summertime wisps of water vapor rise to the edge of space (~83 km high) and crystallize around disintegrated meteoroids. When you see one, you’re literally seeing a cloud of frosted meteor smoke.
NASA's AIM spacecraft detected the season's first NLCs near the North Pole on May 22nd. Now they are spreading. Gayford Pond is at latitude +51N. Soon, the clouds will be even further south, probably reaching mid-latitudes by the second week of June. To see them, look west 30 to 60 minutes after sunset (or before sunrise) when the sun is just below the horizon. They look like this.
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THESE WHISKEY STONES ARE *REALLY* COLD: 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 pictured above flew to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon, 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 Father's Day and birthday 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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