GEOMAGNETIC STORM FORECAST (UPDATED): Geomagnetic storms are possible on Jan. 3-4 when a pair of CMEs is expected to hit Earth's magnetic field. CME #1 was launched by a powerful M7-flare on Dec. 31st. CME #2 followed on Jan. 1st, propelled by a weaker but better aimed C6-flare. Their combined impact could cause G2-class geomagnetic storms. The only bad news: Aurora visibility will be reduced by glare from this weekend's full Wolf Moon. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
AN ENTIRE YEAR OF SUNSPOTS: Let's call it "sunspot dedication." Every day in 2025 (clouds permitting), Warren Spreng of Mason, Ohio, pointed his filtered Seestar 50 telescope at the sun and took a picture. "I then layered each day's image over the previous day's to build a composite of the disk with all the sunspots for that month," Spreng explains.
Here is the result. Click on the image for a high-res view of every sunspot in 2025:
Spreng's archive shows at a glance that Solar Cycle 25 is far from over. Every month in 2025 brought numerous large sunspots on both sides of the sun's equator. As 2026 begins, the monthly-averaged sunspot number remains comfortably above 100.
Solar cycle predictions from NOAA suggest that the sunspot number should remain about this high throughout most of 2026 with a slow decline toward Solar Minimum underway by the end of the year. Between now and then, space weather will continue to storm. Stay tuned! Solar flare alerts: SMS Text
more images: from Patricio Leon of Santiago, Chile; from Senol Sanli of Bursa - TURKEY
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
IRON HEART VALENTINE'S GIFT: Valentine’s Day is coming. Do you have a truly far-out gift? The Iron Heart Valentine’s Swing celebrates a love that is strong, steady, and enduring. On Nov. 13, 2025, it flew to the edge of space, floating 100,895 feet above the Sierra Nevada Mountains of central California:
You can have it for $159.95. The gift-boxed swing includes a unique keepsake card featuring the Iron Heart at the top of Earth's atmosphere. Inside, the card tells the story of the flight and certifies that this swing has been to the edge of space.
Earth to Sky Valentine's 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. And, best of all, all sales support student science projects and STEM education.
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