SpaceWeather.com Archive — Wed, Sep 11, 2024

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GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH--EXTENDED: Geomagnetic storms are possible for the next three days--especially on Sept. 13th when a full halo CME is expected to strike Earth head-on. NOAA predicts a chance of G1 storms on the Sept. 11th and 12th, followed by a G2 storm on the 13th. CME impact alerts: SMS Tex t

MULTIPLE CMEs ARE HEADING OUR WAY: This Friday's predicted CME impact might be just the beginning. Active sunspot AR3814 is crackling with solar flares and may have hurled as many as four CMEs toward Earth in the past 36 hours. This NOAA model shows the first two:

More CMEs may be added to their model as fresh coronagraph data become available. Rapid-fire CME impacts are a key ingredient for strong geomagnetic storms and, indeed, the geomagnetic storm watch may soon be elevated to category G3 (Strong) for Sept. 13th and 14th. Stay tuned. CME impact alerts: SMS Tex t

ASTRONAUTS WILL SPACEWALK WITHOUT AN AIRLOCK: SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission took flight Tuesday morning (Sept. 10th @ 5:23 a.m. EDT) when a Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral. Conrad Pope watched the rocket roar into space from Wilmington, North Carolina:

"I wasn’t sure it was going to launch due to weather in Florida," says Pope. "But when it did, it was spectacular!"

Polaris Dawn is funded and led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, the founder of financial firm Shift4 Payments. SpaceX engineers Anna Menon and Sarah Gillis and retired US Air Force pilot Scott Poteet round out the crew of four.

A highlight of the mission will be their attempt to perform a spacewalk without an airlock. Opening the door of the Crew Dragon capsule will expose all four crew members to the vacuum of space. Only their spacesuits will keep them safe. Also, differences in pressure may make it difficult to relock the vehicle’s hatch. It's actually a daring maneuver, and we wish the crew good luck when they try it later this week.

more images: from Randall Gacek of Fairfax, Virginia

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"HAND OF APOLLO" STAR TREK CHRISTMAS ORNAMENT: You can't buy this on Amazon. The Hand of Apollo Christmas Ornament is only available from the Earth to Sky Store. On Aug. 15, 2024, it flew to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon:

You can have it for $127.95. This ornament depicts the iconic opening scene from original Star Trek series episode "Who Mourns for Adonais?" first aired in 1967. Near the planet Pollux III, the Enterprise was held immobile by an energy field shaped as a human hand. It belonged to a being claiming to be the Greek god Apollo. This will look far out on your Christmas tree this December.

The students of Earth to Sky Calculus are selling space ornaments to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Don't wait for Christmas--get yours now!