BLUEWALKER 3 UPDATE: SpaceX successfully launched the huge BlueWalker 3 communications satellite along with 34 Starlink satellites on Sept. 10th at 9:20 pm EDT. The Falcon 9 rocket placed BlueWalker 3 into a circular orbit at approximately 513 km in altitude where some experts believe it could become one of the brightest objects in the night sky. Light pollution or celestial wonder? We hope to receive sighting reports soon.
SUNSPOT GENESIS: A new sunspot (AR3098) is rapidly growing in the sun's northern hemisphere, more than quadrupling in size since today began. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured the region's dynamic growth:
Rapid changes in the sunspot's core are destabilizing its magnetic field, increasing the chances of an explosive flare. A C5-class flare this morning (movie) sent rivulets of plasma across almost half the solar disk and could herald stronger flares to come. Stay tuned. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
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RARE REFLECTION RAINBOW: We've all seen one rainbow. Sometimes we even see two. But three? "It was pretty puzzling," says Anders Källberg, who photographed two normal rainbows with an unusual third cutting across them over Kolåsen, Sweden:
Källberg captured a rare "reflection rainbow." To understand where it comes from, first consider how normal rainbows are formed:
Rainbows appear when sunlight bounces in and out of falling raindrops. Raindrops act like tiny prisms, spreading sunbeams into their constituent colors. One bounce produces the primary rainbow. Two bounces creates the secondary rainbow. Three bounces .... wait! ... that's not where the third rainbow comes from.
The third rainbow is actually a primary rainbow created by an image of the sun in a nearby body of water. The reflected sun shines up into the raindrops, producing a new rainbow from a completely different direction.
Indeed, says Källberg, "there was a large lake behind my back, and a reflected image of the sun was shining up from it. Fun effect!"
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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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