ANOTHER CME IS COMING: Yesterday, a CME just missed Earth. The next one might make contact. NOAA forecasters say that another CME could graze Earth's magnetic field on July 14th. The glancing blow could spark a minor G1-class geomagnetic storm with high-latitude auroras. CME Impact Alerts: SMS Text
LOOK FOR AIRGLOW TONIGHT: There's a new Moon on July 14th. That means now is a good time to look for airglow. Aaron Watson photographed the phenomenon Saturday night from the West Elk Mountains of Colorado:
"I was enjoying the Milky Way when I noticed some wispy brightness in the sky to the north," says Watson. "Thinking it might be auroras, I grabbed the camera and found neon green on my viewscreen."
But it was *not* auroras. Green airglow comes from photochemical reactions in Earth's upper atmosphere. It is present almost every night, but it is only visible from dark-sky sites on nights around the New Moon.
Tonight is such a night. Get away from city lights and point your camera at the sky. If the screen turns green, you have found your own airglow. Submit photos here.
more images: from James Perez-Rogers of Olive, NY; from Marcus Prazniak of Tonopah, NV
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Space Weather Newsletter
STERLING SILVER RAINBOW DRAGONFLY: Are you looking for a far-out gift? Consider the Rainbow Dragonfly Space Pendant. The students of Earth to Sky Calculus launched it to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $179.95. Made of stained glass with a sterling silver exoskeleton, the pendant has a wingspan of 1.1-inches and comes with a matching 18-inch sterling silver chain.
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
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Space Weather Newsletter