A FLURRY OF SOLAR FLARES: Sunspot complex 3976-3981 is growing increasingly active with multiple strong M-class solar flares on Feb. 2nd. So far, not one of the explosions has hurled a significant CME toward Earth. However, this could change if the activity continues. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
VENUS-MOON CONJUNCTION: This weekend, the crescent Moon and Venus are close together in the sunset sky. Gwenael Blanck photographed the conjunction from Paris, France:
"This is one of those rare celestial events that makes people look up," says Blanck. "A lot of tourists and passers-by were admiring the scene while I was shooting. They could not miss the bright Moon and Venus, but many of them could not see Saturn because of city lights. Here it is."
The planets are moving apart now, but still clustered tightly enough for a beautiful sky show. Step outside after sunset an look west. It's a nice way to end the day.
more images: from Thomas Wildoner of Weatherly, PA, USA; from Montserrat Canal Quintana of Cardona, Barcelona, España; from Jan Koeman of Bamako, Mali; from R.T. Smith of Stoneville, NC, USA; from Patricio Leon of Santiago, Chile; from Chris Cook of Huntington Beach, California
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SUNI WILLIAMS ON THE CANADARM: When you've been on the ISS as long as Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, unlikely things are bound to happen. On Jan. 30th, the stranded astronauts were walking outside the space station when they flew directly over a small telescope in Oxford, UK. Amateur astronomer Charline Giroud used it to take this picture:
"Suni Williams can be seen at the end of the robotic arm, while Butch Wilmore was working next to the Quest airlock platform in the shadow of the station, making him unfortunately not visible in the picture," says Giroud. "On this day, Suni set a new record for time spent spacewalking, now she's also the first female astronaut to be photographed from the ground during an EVA. Congratulations, Suni!"
"I was very lucky to capture this event under clear skies with my telescope from my hometown," adds Giroud. "It was a fantastic moment."
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24K SPACE ROSE FOR VALENTINE'S DAY: On Jan. 24, 2025, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a cosmic ray balloon to the stratosphere. This 24K Space Rose went along for the ride:
You can have it for $127.75. At the apex of the flight, the gold-dipped and gilded bloom was 115,823 feet above the Sierra Nevada mountains of central California, touching the edge of space. It comes with a greeting card showing the flower in flight, and telling the story of its journey to the stratosphere and back again.
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