GEOMAGNETIC UNREST POSSIBLE THIS WEEKEND: NOAA forecasters say that geomagnetric unrest is possible on Jan. 13th in response to one or more passing CMEs. These are near-miss CMEs, not direct hits. The ripple effect of the passing clouds is likely to disturb Earth's magnetic field without triggering full-fledged geomagnetic storms. Aurora alerts: SMS Text
POLAR STRATOSPHERIC CLOUDS OVER ICELAND: Last month, a number of unlikely things happened in the polar stratosphere. First, air temperatures plunged to a 40-year record low for the month of December. Within that staggeringly frigid (-89 C) air mass, polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) materialized. Then, the entire polar vortex tipped, wafting the clouds over Iceland's Glacier Lagoon, where Björn Júlíus Grímsson photographed them on Dec. 21st during a geomagnetic storm:
"I have been an aurora tour guide in Iceland for many years," says Grímsson, "but I have never seen anything like this. Moonlight hit the polar stratospheric clouds, making them appear as if they were lit from within. They were even more colorful than the auroras. It just goes to show you that no matter how much time and experience you have, there are always amazing surprises which reveal themselves when you least expect it."
Could it happen again? Maybe. Not long after Grímsson took this picture, the stratosphere warmed up and dispersed the clouds. It's still winter, though, and another cold wave is possible. You can monitor the situation with daily temperature reports right here on Spaceweather.com.
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RARE LT. UHURA MUG (COLLECTOR'S ITEM): You can't buy this on Amazon. Only the Earth to Sky Store has the rare Lt. Uhura Coffee Mug. Like the great translator of Star Trek, it has been to space:
On June 20th, this 16 oz. ceramic mug featuring the face of Nichelle Nichols flew to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray balloon. At the apex of the flight, it floated 92,192 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California.
You can have it for $170.10 (the serial number of the Enterprise divided by 10). It comes with a greeting card showing the mug in flight and telling the story of its journey to the edge of space and back again.
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