WEEKEND AURORA FORECAST: High-latitude sky watchers might see auroras this weekend. A stream of high-speed (~700 km/s) solar wind is blowing around Earth, and the pressure it is exerting on our planet's magnetosphere could spark G1/G2-class geomagnetic storms. Auroras inside the Arctic Circle are almost guaranteed on Jan. 17-18. Aurora alerts: SMS Text
WINTER POLLEN CORONAS: Most trees disperse their pollen in springtime. The Ashe Juniper trees of Texas, however, are strange and different. "Here in the Texas Hill Country, Ashe Junipers give off their pollen clouds in winter," reports Andrew Hulse of Bandera County. "They produce a rainbow around the sun." Hulse photographed the phenomenon on Jan. 15th:
This is called a "pollen corona." Coronas are luminous rings that surround the sun when light is scattered from small particles like pollen. The most commonly seen coronas are created by water droplets in clouds. Pollen grains do better than water; they make intensely colored rings.
These colorful coronas will appear in Texas skies for the next month or two. The Ashe juniper releases significant amounts of pollen from roughly December through February or sometimes even March. Locals call the tree "mountain cedar," and it is responsible for a lot of "cedar fever" allergies at this time of year.
more images: from Levi Riggins of Leander, Texas
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A RARE GATHERING OF PLANETS AROUND THE SUN: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. For the record, we think this week's SOHO coronagraph view of Venus, Mars and Mercury near the sun is absolutely beautiful:
Astronomers call this a "triple superior solar conjunction." It's "superior" because all three planets are on the far side of the sun as seen from Earth. ("Inferior" conjunctions occur when planets are between Earth and the sun.) A superior conjunction like this is a decades-class event (at least).
Two dates of special significance are coming up: Jan. 18th when Mars is less than 1 degree from Mercury, and Jan. 29th when Venus and Mercury are only 2/3rd of a degree apart. Join SOHO for a ringside seat.
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VALENTINE'S DAY IS COMING SOON: Does your sweetheart love space? Shop the Earth to Sky Store for their perfect Valentine's gift. All items have flown to the stratosphere on board cosmic ray research balloons:
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. Each one comes with a greeting card showing the item in space, and telling the story of its launch.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
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