QUIET WEEKEND: The solar disk is peppered with sunspot groups--at least 10 of them. However, all of the sunspots have stable magnetic fields that pose only a slight threat for solar flares. This sets the stage for a quiet weekend. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
LUNAR ECLIPSE AURORAS: A minor geomagnetic storm was underway on March 14th when the full Moon slipped into Earth's shadow. The extra darkness allowed the auroras to *pop* over Alaska. "I call this picture 'Totality'", says Todd Salat, who photographed the sky show from Denali National Park:
"That was the best lunar eclipse I’ve ever seen, and I felt extremely fortunate to experience Alaskan auroras in Denali National Park at the same exact time!" says Salat.
The Moon is that pale red dot on the righthand side of Salat's photo. Without the dimming effect of Earth's shadow, it would have flooded the landscape with silvery light. Instead, we can see the red and green colors of auroras reflected in the snow. It was a magic night for photographers in Alaska.
more images: from Marybeth Kiczenski of Delta Junction, Alaska ; from Mark Lemmon on the Yukon River, Alaska
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"METEOR CRATER" CRYSTAL PENDANT: Have you heard of Moissanite? It's a very rare mineral discovered in Arizona's Meteor Crater by 19th-century chemist Henri Moissan. At first, he thought it was diamond, but later realized it was even more rare. It came from meteorites! On March 4, 2025, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a Moissanite pendant to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $299.95. Almost indistinguishable from natural diamond, the 3-carat crystal is held by a sterling silver frame with the words "I Love You" engraved on the back. It's a truly out of this world gift.
The students are selling space jewelry to pay the helium bill for their high altitude ballooning program. Each pendant comes with a greeting card showing the item in flight and telling the story of its journey to the stratosphere and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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