QUIET WEEKEND: Earth's magnetic field is calming down after a full day of severe geomagnetic storming on Oct. 11th. Auroras this weekend are unlikely--even if the sun hurls another CME our way. It wouldn't arrive until Monday. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
RARE LOW LATITUDE AURORAS: Northern Lights in Mexico? Believe it. On the night of Oct. 10-11, auroras descended all the way to the tropics. René Saade photographed the display from the beach at Mazatlan, Sinaloa:
"We are at 23 degrees north latitude," says Saade. "We also saw auroras during the May 10th superstorm. Seeing auroras this far south twice in a year is amazing!!"
Another notable low-latitude sighting comes from Priscilla Coote in Key West (+24.7 N). "How often do you see auroras and coconut palms in the same photo?" she wonders. Also, the Sociedad de Astronomía del Caribe is reporting auroras photographed from Toa Baja, Puerto Rico (+18.4 N), and from a cruiseship just south of Cuba (~21 N).
These remarkably low latitude sightings highlight the rarity of the Oct. 10-11, 2024, geomagnetic storm. Such a display has occured only a handful of times in the 21st century. Fantastic pictures are pouring into our gallery from around the world. Take a look!
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
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EVENING COMET ALERT: This week, Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS passed between Earth and the sun. It is now emerging from the glare as a bright evening comet. Petr Horálek photographed it today from Tulcik, Slovakia:
"From today on, the comet should start to be easier to observe despite the moonlight," says Horálek. "It will most likely bring spectacular cometary views within a week. I took this shot about 45 minutes after sunset. The comet was easily observable through the 7x50 binoculars even only 2.5 degrees above the horizon."
Prospects for observing this evening comet are nicely discussed in an article from Nick James of the British Astronomical Association: Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS looking good for October.
more images: from Toni Scarmato of San Costantino di Briatico, Calabria, Italy; from Michael Jaeger of Nöchling, Austria; from Paolo Palma of Rome, Italy; from Alan Dyer near Rodeo, New Mexico; from Richard Sears of Ballico, California
Realtime Comet Photo Gallery
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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!
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
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