GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH (G1): Minor G1-class geomagnetic storms are possible on Sept. 16th - 17th when two streams of solar wind are expected to reach Earth. They are flowing from a pair of holes in the sun's atmosphere, and could cause high-latitude auroras when they arrive. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
MONITORING SATURN'S DECAGON: Hubble isn't the only observatory monitoring Saturn's new south polar decagon. Maximilian-Vlad Teodorescu captured this picture of the ten-sided cloud using a 14-inch telescope in Magurele, Romania:
"Actually, I've only managed to image 9 sides," he says. "This is a composite of imaging sessions from the end of July to the start of September, with some longitudes not yet complete."
Nine sides is enough. It's clearly a decagon--and monitoring is important. This strange new cloud is rapidly changing. Astronomers saw only faint vertices in 2023, sharper ones in 2024, and a fully formed ten-sided pattern in 2025.
The vertices don't sit still, either. Each one swings back and forth with a period of about 32 days, as if a disturbance is running around the polygon. The disturbance might be linked to Saturn's Red Spot.
Yes, Saturn has a Red Spot--originally called "Anne's Spot." It is much smaller than Jupiter's, and it churns around Saturn's southern hemisphere, potentially creating an atmospheric interference pattern that manifests as a decagon.
Nobody knows what will happen next. Hubble looks at Saturn no more than a few times a year. Amateurs can look every clear night. So, let's finish the 10th side and start again! There may be much to learn.
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STARRY NIGHT WINE STOPPER: You can't buy this on Amazon. Only the Earth to Sky Store has the Starry Night Wine Stopper. On March 15, 2026, this impressionist stopper flew to the stratosphere onboard an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $99.95. The Starry Night is an oil-on-canvas painting by Vincent van Gogh. Physicists say it accurately depicts Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities in the clouds outside his asylum room at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, just before sunrise. The airtight rubber seal securely plugs bottles of wine or any other beverage.
With your stopper, you'll receive a gift card showing the Starry Night in flight and telling the story of its journey to the stratosphere (and back again).
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
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