THE CMEs MISSED EARTH: A pair of CMEs expected to strike Earth on Sept 8-9 missed. There are hints of a near miss in solar wind data, but no direct hit. Maybe next time.
THIN CRESCENT MOON OVER PARIS: The Moon was New on Sept. 10th. In Paris, photographer Gwenael Blanck caught the lunar disk hours before it faded to black:
"The Moon was very thin (only 1.1%), but I could see it easily through binoculars just above the Eiffel Tower," says Blanck.
Another photo-op is only days away. On Sept. 14th, the crescent Moon will occult Venus in the daytime skies of Europe. A Parisian with a clear eastern horizon can catch Venus emerging from behind the Moon's sunlit limb at 10:34 UT, about 8 degrees above the horizon. Will the Eiffel Tower appear as well? Stay tuned.
GET READY FOR THE GIANT BLUEBIRD SATELLITES: The largest commercial satellite antennas ever put in orbit are about to fly over the USA, producing a series of "mini trains" over towns and cities in most states.
Introducing the BlueBirds: They've been called "cell phone towers in space," designed to deliver broadband to ordinary phones anywhere on Earth. AST SpaceMobile launched the prototype in 2022, and now there are a dozen in Earth orbit.
The newest BlueBirds are the largest, with flat antennas about the size of a tennis court (2,400 sq ft): BlueBirds 11, 12 and 13 launched together on Aug. 5th. Two of them (12 and 13) have recently unfurled their giant antennas, while BlueBird 11 appears to be in the process.
Few people have been tracking these satellites. Early sightings suggest that they are about as bright as the stars of the Big Dipper when they pass directly overhead. This makes them easy naked-eye targets.
This weekend, they could be unusually bright. On Sept. 9th, the orbits of BlueBirds 11, 12 and 13 turned edge-on to the sun. (Sat-jargon: Their "beta angle" is zero.) In this geometry, first-generation BlueBirds brightened to magnitude +0.5 at zenith. If the new ones follow suit, they may outshine the Big Dipper as moving lights of first magnitude.
On Sept. 12-14, The BlueBirds will fly over the USA in a train with 3 to 7 minutes between satellites. Skies will be dark: New Moon is Sept. 10th, and the Moon is below the horizon during almost every evening pass.
All you need to know is when to look. Check out this timetable for major cities. Better yet, sign up for Backyard Astronomy Alerts, and you will receive a text message when the BlueBirds are about to fly over your hometown--sky maps included in every alert.
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MILLION-YEAR-OLD METEORITE PENDANT: About one million years ago, this meteorite landed in northern Sweden. On Aug. 25, 2026, we sent it back onboard a cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $269.95. This is a spherical fragment of the Muonionalusta Meteorite found near the Muonio River in Sweden. It is contained within a sterling silver cage that hangs from a matching 18-inch chain.
The meteorite comes with a certificate of authenticity, but you can see that it's real using your own eyes. The sphere is crisscrossed by a faint pattern of geometric crystal lines formed by millions of years of slow cooling in space.
The students of Earth to Sky Calculus 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.
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All sales support hands-on STEM education
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