SOHO IMAGES DELAYED BY WILDFIRES: Many readers are wondering why SOHO coronagraph images are stuck on Jan. 8th. Answer: Wildfire evacuations at JPL have interrupted the reception of SOHO telemetry. Rumour has it that data may be restored later today or tomorrow--just in time to see sungrazing Comet ATLAS (see below) enter the spacecraft's field of view. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
SUNGRAZING COMET: Comet ATLAS (C/2024 G3) is falling toward the sun for a (possibly fatal) close encounter on Jan. 13th. Juan Jose Ortiz saw it this morning from Metepec, Mexico:
"I saw the comet surrounded by the orange glow of dawn just before sunrise," says Ortiz.
As this comet approaches the sun, solar heating will cause it to brighten dramatically. It is already near magnitude 0, and it could brighten another 100-fold this weekend. If current trends hold, its magnitude should increase to -5 (twice as bright as Venus) on Jan. 13th, when the comet swoops only 0.09 AU from the sun.
"It might even be visible in the daytime sky," says Nick James of the British Astronomical Association. "However, the sun will be only 5 degrees away. Observing with the sun so nearby is dangerous and should only be attempted with great care."
If the comet survives, it could become a nice object in the evening sky next week. Southern hemisphere observers are favored, but many northerners will be able to see it, too. Read "Prospects for C/2024 G3 (ATLAS)" by Nick James for observing tips--and stay tuned!
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PLANET CAT IS BACK! There's a story behind this cat. Keep reading for the full story. The Planet Cat Pendant is a far-out gift for the cat-lover in your life: The sterling silver jewelry touched space on Nov. 17, 2022, when it hitched a ride onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon.
You can have it for $199.95. The students of Earth to Sky Calculus are selling space pendants to support their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each one comes with a greeting card showing the pendant in flight and telling the story of its journey to the stratosphere and back again.
And now for the story: We launched this balloon on Nov. 17, 2022, more than two years ago. When the payload parachuted back to Earth, it veered off course, landing unexpectedly on Saline Peak, a rugged mountain in Death Valley National Park. The payload remained in that spot for 2 winters and 2 summers, subjected to episodes of deep snow, hurricane-force winds, and scorching 100+ degree F temperatures. Severe weather and technical terrain prevented us from recovering the payload until Jan. 5, 2024. The payload and parachute were severely bleached by sustained exposure to the Death Valley sun, but the instrumentation is completely intact. All the radiation sensors and cameras still work, and the Planet Cat Pendent, which was shadowed by the payload, looks awesome.
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