DEATH VALLEY COSMIC RAY BALLOON PAYLOAD: Regular updates to the narrative on Spaceweather.com may be intermittant or delayed today. Dr. Tony Phillips is in Death Valley National Park recovering a cosmic ray balloon payload that landed near Saline Peak. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text.
A STREAM OF SOLAR WIND IS APPROACHING EARTH: A hole has opened in the sun's atmosphere, and it is venting a stream of solar wind directly toward Earth. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory photographed the dark chasm on Oct. 9th:
This is a "coronal hole" -- a region in the sun's atmosphere where magnetic fields open up and allow solar wind to escape. Coronal holes look dark because the glowing-hot plasma normally contained there is missing.
A stream of solar wind flowing from this coronal hole should reach Earth on Oct. 12th. Its arrival could spark G1-class geomagnetic storms. The odds of storming are increased by the "Russell-McPherron effect," which links the magnetic fields of the sun and Earth during weeks around equinoxes. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
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HIDDEN CHAMBER SHOOTING STAR PENDANT: On Sept. 27th, the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched a cosmic ray balloon to the stratosphere. This stainless steel "shooting star" pendant hitched a ride:
You can have it for $119.95. The star contains a hidden chamber, which you may fill with the ashes of a loved one or anything else you wish to keep close to your heart.
The students are selling space pendants to pay the helium bill for their cosmic ray ballooning program. Each one comes with a greeting card showing the jewelry in flight and telling the story of its trip to the stratosphere and back again.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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