THE SUN IS BEING QUIET: The sun has not produced a significant flare in more than a week. Quiet conditions are expected to continue today. There are plenty of sunspots facing Earth, but none of them have unstable magnetic fields inclined to explode. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text
JUPITER OUTSHINES THE STARS: See that very bright star at midnight? It's no star. This week, Jupiter outshines everything else in the midnight sky as it makes its annual closest approach to Earth. Look for it between the horns of Taurus the Bull: sky map.
Jupiter over Bluff, Utah, on Dec. 1st. Credit: Paul Martini.
Shining at magnitude -2.8, Jupiter is almost four times brighter than Sirius. Only the sun, Moon and Venus are brighter than the giant planet this week.
Astronomers call this event "opposition," because Jupiter and the sun are on opposite sides of Earth. This diagram explains it all. During the nights around opposition, Jupiter rises in the east at sunset and soars nearly overhead at midnight; it's up all night. The precise moment of closest approach occurs on Dec. 6th, but Jupiter will be extra big and bright all week long.
DIAMOND DUST SUN HALOS: The hum, chug and boom of snowmaking machines means one thing. Ski season has arrived? Yes, but also, look toward the sun! Steven Poole's Dec. 4th photo from the Jackson Hole Ski Area in Wyoming shows why:
"The sun halos this morning were spectacular," says Poole.
Diamond dust sun halos, to be precise. Ordinary sun halos are caused by ice crystals forming naturally in high cirrus clouds. Snowmaking machines create a special type of crystal called "diamond dust." These man-made crystals tend to be more optically perfect than natural crystals in clouds, producing extra-sharp halos of exquisite complexity.
The display Poole witnessed is actually a combination of at least 6 different halos: a 22-degree halo, an upper tangent arc, a parhelic circle, a 46-degree halo, a circumzenithal arc, and a couple of sundogs hidden behind the trees.
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
CHRISTMAS GIFTS FROM THE EDGE OF SPACE: Christmas is coming. Are you looking for a far-out gift? Check out the Earth to Sky Store. It's filled with unique items that have flown to the edge of space onboard cosmic ray research balloons.
Carried aloft by giant helium balloons, these unique gifts have flown above 99.7% of Earth's atmosphere, experiencing space-like blasts of cosmic rays, extreme cold, and a wild ride parachuting back to Earth after the balloon explodes. Even Amazon doesn't carry items this far out.
Don't forget to enter coupon code "BLACKCAT" at checkout for a 10% holiday discount.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Comet Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter