THE SUNSPOT REPORT FROM MARS: NASA has re-established communications with Mars rover Perseverance, which has been out of touch since December. The radio silence was caused by Mars passing directly behind the sun. Daily images of the sun from Mars may now resume. Today's photo shows a relatively large sunspot group on the farside of the sun.
AFTERGLOW OF A GEOMAGNETIC STORM: New research confirms what some sky watchers have long known: The sky continues to glow green for days after severe geomagnetic storms are over. Nicolas Rossetto photographed the phenomenon from Dole, France:
The green ripples in Rossetto's photo are not auroras. They are airglow.
"After auroras, especially big ones, it looks like airglow is more intense," says Rossetto. "For at least 3 nights following last week's big storms, we got a nice airglow display here in France."
Airglow is a chemiluminescent process in the upper atmosphere normally energized by sunlight. Geomagnetic storms can do the same thing. During strong geomagnetic storms, Earth's magnetic shield opens, allowing solar-wind energy to be stored in the magnetosphere and then released into the upper atmosphere over subsequent nights. As a result, the strongest airglow often peaks one to several days after the storm.
"In the movies, we can see that there are multiple layers of air glowing," notes Rossetto. "Each layer seems to have its own pattern of gravity waves."
Because the severe storms of Jan. 19-21 occured around the time of a New Mon, skies were dark enough to reveal this afterglow. Did you see it, too? Submit your photos here.
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THE LOVE PUZZLE FOR VALENTINE'S DAY: Valentine’s Day is coming. Do you have a truly far-out gift? Consider the the Love Puzzle. On Jan. 15th, it flew to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $91.95. This acrylic puzzle piece is a love note: "Thank you for being such an important piece of my life," the inscription says. It's a durable reminder that you fit together. The Love Puzzle comes with a unique gift card showing the keepsake at the top of Earth's atmosphere.
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
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