wgamador2
@wgamador2
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SpaceWeather and other space stuff...
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AURORAS UNDERFOOT:
Earth orbit is a great place to watch geomagnetic storms. On July 14th, astronauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) witnessed a broad curtain of green auroras over the southern hemisphere. This is what aurora australis looks like from space:
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The picture was taken by one of the crew of space shuttle Atlantis, now docked to the ISS for the last resupply mission of NASA's 30-year shuttle program. In addition to Southern Lights, the picture also frames Atlantis's port side wing and a segment of the boom sensor system attached to the shuttle's robotic arm. See also the panoramic shot.
The display was caused by a solar wind stream which hit Earth's magnetic field on July 12th. Note to astronauts: Another solar wind stream is heading for Earth, due to arrive on July 19th-20th. The crew of Atlantis should remain alert for auroras.
Earth orbit is a great place to watch geomagnetic storms. On July 14th, astronauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) witnessed a broad curtain of green auroras over the southern hemisphere. This is what aurora australis looks like from space:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/121/2aabco.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/121/2aabco.jpg/'>
The picture was taken by one of the crew of space shuttle Atlantis, now docked to the ISS for the last resupply mission of NASA's 30-year shuttle program. In addition to Southern Lights, the picture also frames Atlantis's port side wing and a segment of the boom sensor system attached to the shuttle's robotic arm. See also the panoramic shot.
The display was caused by a solar wind stream which hit Earth's magnetic field on July 12th. Note to astronauts: Another solar wind stream is heading for Earth, due to arrive on July 19th-20th. The crew of Atlantis should remain alert for auroras.
CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH VESTA:
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This weekend, NASA's Dawn spacecraft is entering orbit around Vesta for a year-long study of the giant asteroid. Dawn's cameras are expected to reveal a primitive world of desolate beauty from close range. As close as Dawn will be, however, you can be even closer; it's actually possible to hold a piece of Vesta in your hand. Authentic Vesta meteorites are now available in the Space Weather Store.
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My Vesta is in Leo. Where is yours?
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This weekend, NASA's Dawn spacecraft is entering orbit around Vesta for a year-long study of the giant asteroid. Dawn's cameras are expected to reveal a primitive world of desolate beauty from close range. As close as Dawn will be, however, you can be even closer; it's actually possible to hold a piece of Vesta in your hand. Authentic Vesta meteorites are now available in the Space Weather Store.
-------
My Vesta is in Leo. Where is yours?
JAN. 8, 2011
TRIPLE PUNCH HOLE CLOUDS:
"I've lived by the sea for many years, but never seen anything like this," reports Wesley Tyler of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. "On Friday, Jan. 7th, there were three punch hole clouds in the same place." He grabbed his camera and recorded the phenomenon:
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Considered a mystery for many years, punch hole clouds appear on rare occasions all over the world, sometimes attracting widespread attention, e.g., the famous Moscow UFO cloud of 2009. Recently meteorologists have penetrated the mystery: punch holes form when airplanes fly through thin layers of high altitude clouds. If water droplets in the cloud are supercooled (below freezing but still liquid), they can suddenly turn to snow when shocked by the passage of the plane. This mini-snowstorm occurs over a circular area much wider than the airplane itself.
Not all flights through banks of clouds will produce snow. According to Wired Magazine, only about 7.8 percent of the Earth??s surface is covered with clouds at the right elevation for supercooled droplets to form. Because jet aircraft don't generally cruise at those altitudes, they may only form hole-punch clouds when they take off or land.
The apparition of three rare cloud-holes in one small area suggests a busy airspace around Myrtle Beach. Indeed, the Myrtle Beach International Airport is just miles from where the photo was taken. Or maybe punch hole clouds are still a bit of a mystery after all....
TRIPLE PUNCH HOLE CLOUDS:
"I've lived by the sea for many years, but never seen anything like this," reports Wesley Tyler of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. "On Friday, Jan. 7th, there were three punch hole clouds in the same place." He grabbed his camera and recorded the phenomenon:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/543/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/543/2aabc.jpg/'>
Considered a mystery for many years, punch hole clouds appear on rare occasions all over the world, sometimes attracting widespread attention, e.g., the famous Moscow UFO cloud of 2009. Recently meteorologists have penetrated the mystery: punch holes form when airplanes fly through thin layers of high altitude clouds. If water droplets in the cloud are supercooled (below freezing but still liquid), they can suddenly turn to snow when shocked by the passage of the plane. This mini-snowstorm occurs over a circular area much wider than the airplane itself.
Not all flights through banks of clouds will produce snow. According to Wired Magazine, only about 7.8 percent of the Earth??s surface is covered with clouds at the right elevation for supercooled droplets to form. Because jet aircraft don't generally cruise at those altitudes, they may only form hole-punch clouds when they take off or land.
The apparition of three rare cloud-holes in one small area suggests a busy airspace around Myrtle Beach. Indeed, the Myrtle Beach International Airport is just miles from where the photo was taken. Or maybe punch hole clouds are still a bit of a mystery after all....
MAN-MADE COMET CRATER:
In July 2005, NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft dropped an 820-lb copper projectile onto the surface of Comet Tempel 1. Almost six years later, NASA finally saw the impact crater. On Valentine's Day 2011, long after the dust had cleared, Stardust-NExT flew past Tempel 1 and photographed the impact site:
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It's not very impressive--and that is telling. The lack of a well-defined crater reveals much about the structural integrity of the comet's surface. Science team member Pete Schultz of Brown University explains: "We see a [shallow] crater with a small mound in the center, and it appears that some of the ejecta went up and came right back down. This tells us this cometary nucleus is fragile and weak based on how subdued the crater is we see today."
In July 2005, NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft dropped an 820-lb copper projectile onto the surface of Comet Tempel 1. Almost six years later, NASA finally saw the impact crater. On Valentine's Day 2011, long after the dust had cleared, Stardust-NExT flew past Tempel 1 and photographed the impact site:
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" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/684/2aabc.jpg/'>
It's not very impressive--and that is telling. The lack of a well-defined crater reveals much about the structural integrity of the comet's surface. Science team member Pete Schultz of Brown University explains: "We see a [shallow] crater with a small mound in the center, and it appears that some of the ejecta went up and came right back down. This tells us this cometary nucleus is fragile and weak based on how subdued the crater is we see today."
NOV. 30, 2010
RETURN OF JUPITER'S MISSING STRIPE:
The revival of Jupiter's South Equatorial Belt (SEB), missing for nearly a year, is now well underway. The roiling, turbulent disturbance that heralds the brown stripe's full return stretches almost halfway around the giant planet. "Here is a projection map showing the revival on Nov. 29th," says amateur astronomer Wayne Jaeschke of West Chester, Pennsylvania. Note the region bracketed by arrows:
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I made the map by combining two pictures of Jupiter I took using my 14-inch Celestron telescope," says Jaeschke. "The disturbance has grown dramatically since it first appeared in late October." Indeed, it is now so large that even novice observers are starting to notice it in the eyepieces of backyard telescopes.
The spreading disturbance is not the SEB itself. Instead, it is thought to be a progressive clearing of high clouds that will eventually reveal the brown stripe hiding below. When the SEB finally returns, Jupiter will have two brown stripes again and the planet's appearance will return to normal. Meanwhile, amateur astronomers are encouraged to monitor the revival.
RETURN OF JUPITER'S MISSING STRIPE:
The revival of Jupiter's South Equatorial Belt (SEB), missing for nearly a year, is now well underway. The roiling, turbulent disturbance that heralds the brown stripe's full return stretches almost halfway around the giant planet. "Here is a projection map showing the revival on Nov. 29th," says amateur astronomer Wayne Jaeschke of West Chester, Pennsylvania. Note the region bracketed by arrows:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/585/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/585/2aabc.jpg/'>
I made the map by combining two pictures of Jupiter I took using my 14-inch Celestron telescope," says Jaeschke. "The disturbance has grown dramatically since it first appeared in late October." Indeed, it is now so large that even novice observers are starting to notice it in the eyepieces of backyard telescopes.
The spreading disturbance is not the SEB itself. Instead, it is thought to be a progressive clearing of high clouds that will eventually reveal the brown stripe hiding below. When the SEB finally returns, Jupiter will have two brown stripes again and the planet's appearance will return to normal. Meanwhile, amateur astronomers are encouraged to monitor the revival.
AUG. 13, 2010
CONJUNCTION:
As predicted, the sky show did happen — the 10% illuminated crescent moon joined in the conjunction of Venus, Mars and Saturn in the western sky this evening.
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Hurray for clear skies. The weather was pretty stormy yesterday until early this morning, but every wisp of cloud cover had cleared by early evening. It was a pretty starry night, though my attention was mainly focused on the western sky — where the moon and the three planets were hanging low. (Plus, stars aren't easily photograph-able in Singapore skies anyway — too bright. 😢)
CONJUNCTION:
As predicted, the sky show did happen — the 10% illuminated crescent moon joined in the conjunction of Venus, Mars and Saturn in the western sky this evening.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/684/2aabcg.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/684/2aabcg.jpg/'>
Hurray for clear skies. The weather was pretty stormy yesterday until early this morning, but every wisp of cloud cover had cleared by early evening. It was a pretty starry night, though my attention was mainly focused on the western sky — where the moon and the three planets were hanging low. (Plus, stars aren't easily photograph-able in Singapore skies anyway — too bright. 😢)
AUG. 26, 2010
SMALLEST FULL MOON OF THE YEAR:
If you thought this week's full Moon looked a bit small, you were right. It was the smallest full Moon of the year. Anthony Ayiomamitis of Athens, Greece, offers this comparison:
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It shows the largest full Moon of the year (Jan. 30) vs. the smallest (Aug. 25th). "The difference between the two full moons is around 14.5% and certainly easily noticeable by the naked eye," says Ayiomamitis.
Johannes Kepler explained the difference 401 years ago: The Moon's orbit around Earth is an ellipse. One side of the orbit (perigee) is 50,000 km closer to Earth than the other (apogee). The full Moon of Aug. 25th was a distant apogee Moon, and that's why it looked so small.
SMALLEST FULL MOON OF THE YEAR:
If you thought this week's full Moon looked a bit small, you were right. It was the smallest full Moon of the year. Anthony Ayiomamitis of Athens, Greece, offers this comparison:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/560/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/560/2aabc.jpg/'>
It shows the largest full Moon of the year (Jan. 30) vs. the smallest (Aug. 25th). "The difference between the two full moons is around 14.5% and certainly easily noticeable by the naked eye," says Ayiomamitis.
Johannes Kepler explained the difference 401 years ago: The Moon's orbit around Earth is an ellipse. One side of the orbit (perigee) is 50,000 km closer to Earth than the other (apogee). The full Moon of Aug. 25th was a distant apogee Moon, and that's why it looked so small.
JULY 17, 2011
FIRST CLOSE-UP OF VESTA:
Mission scientists have confirmed that Dawn is indeed in orbit around Vesta. The giant asteroid's gravity captured the spaceship during the early hours of July 16th. In return, Dawn's cameras captured the first close-up image of Vesta, just released by NASA:
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The image taken for navigation purposes shows Vesta in greater detail than ever before. For comparison, take a look at previous best images of Vesta taken by the Hubble telescope in 1996.
Vesta is 530 kilometers in diameter and the second most massive object in the asteroid belt. Ground- and space-based telescopes have been photographing the ancient asteroid for two centuries, but they have not been able to see much detail on its surface. Dawn will change all that as it orbits Vesta for a full year, taking increasingly close pictures of "arguably the oldest extant primordial surface in the solar system," says Dawn principal investigator Christopher Russell of UCLA.
FIRST CLOSE-UP OF VESTA:
Mission scientists have confirmed that Dawn is indeed in orbit around Vesta. The giant asteroid's gravity captured the spaceship during the early hours of July 16th. In return, Dawn's cameras captured the first close-up image of Vesta, just released by NASA:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/534/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/534/2aabc.jpg/'>
The image taken for navigation purposes shows Vesta in greater detail than ever before. For comparison, take a look at previous best images of Vesta taken by the Hubble telescope in 1996.
Vesta is 530 kilometers in diameter and the second most massive object in the asteroid belt. Ground- and space-based telescopes have been photographing the ancient asteroid for two centuries, but they have not been able to see much detail on its surface. Dawn will change all that as it orbits Vesta for a full year, taking increasingly close pictures of "arguably the oldest extant primordial surface in the solar system," says Dawn principal investigator Christopher Russell of UCLA.
JULY 15, 2011
CORONAL HOLE:
A dark gap in the sun's atmosphere--a "coronal hole"--is spewing solar wind toward Earth. Estimated time of arrival: July 19th. This morning, UV-filtered telescopes onboard NASA's Solar Dynamics Obervatory photographed the opening:
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Coronal holes are places where the sun's magnetic field opens up and allows hot gas to escape. A million mile-per-hour stream of solar wind flowing from this hole could spark polar geomagnetic storms when it arrives early next week. High-latitude sky watchers should be prepared for auroras.
CORONAL HOLE:
A dark gap in the sun's atmosphere--a "coronal hole"--is spewing solar wind toward Earth. Estimated time of arrival: July 19th. This morning, UV-filtered telescopes onboard NASA's Solar Dynamics Obervatory photographed the opening:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/263/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/263/2aabc.jpg/'>
Coronal holes are places where the sun's magnetic field opens up and allows hot gas to escape. A million mile-per-hour stream of solar wind flowing from this hole could spark polar geomagnetic storms when it arrives early next week. High-latitude sky watchers should be prepared for auroras.
LIGHT BRIDGE:
The primary core of sunspot 1236 is divided by a brilliant canyon of light--also known as a "light bridge"--measuring some 20,000 km from end to end. Amateur astronomer Howard Eskildsen photographed the phenomenon from his backyard observatory in Ocala, Florida. Follow the arrow:
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"I used a violet Calcium-K filter, which highlights the bright magnetic froth around the sunspot group as well as the light bridge cutting the main 'spot in two," explains Eskildsen. "Seeing was excellent."
The nature of light bridges is not fully understood. They often herald the break-up of a sunspot. Some research suggests that magnetic fields at the base of a light bridge are busy cross-crossing and reconnecting--the same explosive process that sparks solar flares. Does this mean the primary core of sunspot 1236 will explode? Or quietly fall apart? No one can say. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
The primary core of sunspot 1236 is divided by a brilliant canyon of light--also known as a "light bridge"--measuring some 20,000 km from end to end. Amateur astronomer Howard Eskildsen photographed the phenomenon from his backyard observatory in Ocala, Florida. Follow the arrow:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/708/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/708/2aabc.jpg/'>
"I used a violet Calcium-K filter, which highlights the bright magnetic froth around the sunspot group as well as the light bridge cutting the main 'spot in two," explains Eskildsen. "Seeing was excellent."
The nature of light bridges is not fully understood. They often herald the break-up of a sunspot. Some research suggests that magnetic fields at the base of a light bridge are busy cross-crossing and reconnecting--the same explosive process that sparks solar flares. Does this mean the primary core of sunspot 1236 will explode? Or quietly fall apart? No one can say. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
MAY 2, 2011
MORNING PLANETS:
The Great Morning Planet Show of May 2011 is underway. Every morning for the rest of this month, you can see a beautiful gathering of four planets in the eastern sky. They are Mars, Jupiter, Venus and Mercury, shown here on May 1st over Magnetic Island in east Australia:
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"This is beautiful sight before dawn," says photographer Liz Gleeson. "Venus and Mercury have been visible for a couple of weeks, but now Mars and Jupiter have joined them for a four-way conjunction."
An animation from Sky & Telescope shows what is in store for the rest of the month. The quartet of worlds will rearrange themselves on a daily basis, forming different shapes in the pre-dawn sky. The best mornings are the ones around May 11th, when Venus and Jupiter converge to form a tight pair. They are so bright, they might fool you into thinking you've witnessed a double supernova beaming through the morning twilight. But, no, it's just the two brightest planets in our own solar system.
MORNING PLANETS:
The Great Morning Planet Show of May 2011 is underway. Every morning for the rest of this month, you can see a beautiful gathering of four planets in the eastern sky. They are Mars, Jupiter, Venus and Mercury, shown here on May 1st over Magnetic Island in east Australia:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/143/2aabcl.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/143/2aabcl.jpg/'>
"This is beautiful sight before dawn," says photographer Liz Gleeson. "Venus and Mercury have been visible for a couple of weeks, but now Mars and Jupiter have joined them for a four-way conjunction."
An animation from Sky & Telescope shows what is in store for the rest of the month. The quartet of worlds will rearrange themselves on a daily basis, forming different shapes in the pre-dawn sky. The best mornings are the ones around May 11th, when Venus and Jupiter converge to form a tight pair. They are so bright, they might fool you into thinking you've witnessed a double supernova beaming through the morning twilight. But, no, it's just the two brightest planets in our own solar system.
Posted by M
Maybe why it rules fortune?
I know.
I feel fortunate when i find bacon in my egg sandwich every morning.
LAST PICTURE OF ATLANTIS IN SPACE:
On Thursday, July 21st, space shuttle Atlantis landed at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, wrapping up the final mission of NASA's space shuttle program. At 08:27:48 UT, just 21 minutes before the deorbit burn, astrophotographer Thierry Legault captured what might be the last picture of Atlantis in space--and it was a solar transit:
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Because Atlantis was passing over Europe in broad daylight, the only way to catch it would be in silhouette against the sun. "I traveled from my home in Paris, France, to Emden city, Germany, to put myself in the transit's path," says Legault. "Skies were cloudy, but fortunately the transit occurred in a clear gap. Its duration was only 0.9 seconds and Atlantis, from a distance of 566 km (350 miles), appeared on four images."
The crew of the International Space Station photographed Atlantis even closer to landing, but the orbiter was no longer technically in space. It was reentering Earth's atmosphere:
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The green band of light that Atlantis is plunging into is called "airglow." Airglow is a luminous bubble that surounds our entire planet, decorating the top of the atmosphere with aurora-like color. Although airglow resembles the aurora borealis, its underlying physics is different. Airglow is caused by an assortment of chemical reactions in the upper atmosphere driven by solar ultraviolet radiation; auroras, on the other hand, are prompted by gusts of solar wind.
On Thursday, July 21st, space shuttle Atlantis landed at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, wrapping up the final mission of NASA's space shuttle program. At 08:27:48 UT, just 21 minutes before the deorbit burn, astrophotographer Thierry Legault captured what might be the last picture of Atlantis in space--and it was a solar transit:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/192/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/192/2aabc.jpg/'>
Because Atlantis was passing over Europe in broad daylight, the only way to catch it would be in silhouette against the sun. "I traveled from my home in Paris, France, to Emden city, Germany, to put myself in the transit's path," says Legault. "Skies were cloudy, but fortunately the transit occurred in a clear gap. Its duration was only 0.9 seconds and Atlantis, from a distance of 566 km (350 miles), appeared on four images."
The crew of the International Space Station photographed Atlantis even closer to landing, but the orbiter was no longer technically in space. It was reentering Earth's atmosphere:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/232/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/232/2aabc.jpg/'>
The green band of light that Atlantis is plunging into is called "airglow." Airglow is a luminous bubble that surounds our entire planet, decorating the top of the atmosphere with aurora-like color. Although airglow resembles the aurora borealis, its underlying physics is different. Airglow is caused by an assortment of chemical reactions in the upper atmosphere driven by solar ultraviolet radiation; auroras, on the other hand, are prompted by gusts of solar wind.
AURORAS, MOON AND PLEAIDES: July 25th
A high-speed solar wind stream is buffeting Earth's magnetic field, turning the skies over Canada green. Bob Johnson sends this picture from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan:
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Photo details: Canon 40D, 140mm lens, 10 second exposure, ISO 3200.
"I went outside to see the Moon and Pleiades after midnight on July 25th when the auroras appeared," says Johnson. "It was beautiful."
More auroras are possible tonight as the solar wind continues to blow faster than ~500 km/s. Conditions favor observers in the southern hemisphere where skies are winter-dark.
A high-speed solar wind stream is buffeting Earth's magnetic field, turning the skies over Canada green. Bob Johnson sends this picture from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/192/1aa1h.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/192/1aa1h.jpg/'>
Photo details: Canon 40D, 140mm lens, 10 second exposure, ISO 3200.
"I went outside to see the Moon and Pleiades after midnight on July 25th when the auroras appeared," says Johnson. "It was beautiful."
More auroras are possible tonight as the solar wind continues to blow faster than ~500 km/s. Conditions favor observers in the southern hemisphere where skies are winter-dark.
WESTERN PROM:
The sun is growing quiet as all three Earrthside sunspots decay. Nevertheless, there is some action on the sun's western horizon. Rogerio Marcon sends this picture from his backyard observatory in Campinas SP Brasil:
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"The remains of sunspot 1254 are visible in the foreground," says Marcon. "But what really caught my eye was the big prominence rising above the limb."
Prominences are clouds of plasma held aloft by solar magnetic fields. Current images from the Solar Dynamics Observatory suggest that this one could be unstable. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
The sun is growing quiet as all three Earrthside sunspots decay. Nevertheless, there is some action on the sun's western horizon. Rogerio Marcon sends this picture from his backyard observatory in Campinas SP Brasil:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/189/1aa1n.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/189/1aa1n.jpg/'>
"The remains of sunspot 1254 are visible in the foreground," says Marcon. "But what really caught my eye was the big prominence rising above the limb."
Prominences are clouds of plasma held aloft by solar magnetic fields. Current images from the Solar Dynamics Observatory suggest that this one could be unstable. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
I like this thread. I like stuff too! 🙂
July 27th
BIG SUNSPOTS:
After more than a week of quiet, solar activity is picking up. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory is monitoring two big sunspot groups now emerging over the sun's eastern limb. :
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The leading sunspot group, AR1260, is crackling with C-class solar flares among a quartet of Earth-sized cores. Not far behind, sunspot AR1261 is larger and may harbor energy for flares of its own. At the moment, these two sunspot groups are too far off disk-center to affect Earth, but this will change in the days ahead. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
BIG SUNSPOTS:
After more than a week of quiet, solar activity is picking up. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory is monitoring two big sunspot groups now emerging over the sun's eastern limb. :
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/845/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/845/2aabc.jpg/'>
The leading sunspot group, AR1260, is crackling with C-class solar flares among a quartet of Earth-sized cores. Not far behind, sunspot AR1261 is larger and may harbor energy for flares of its own. At the moment, these two sunspot groups are too far off disk-center to affect Earth, but this will change in the days ahead. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
July 28
BIG SUNSPOTS (Update):
NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of M-class solar flares today. The source would be one of three big sunspots emerging along the sun's northeastern limb. Click on the image to view a 3-day movie from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
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Among the three, the leading sunspot AR1260 is most active. It has produced more than a dozen C-class flares in the past 24 hours, more than doubling the total for the entire month of July so far. New sunspot AR1262, however, could eventually cause more trouble.
Magnetograms of the active region reveal a delta-class magnetic field that harbors energy for powerful X-class eruptions. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
BIG SUNSPOTS (Update):
NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of M-class solar flares today. The source would be one of three big sunspots emerging along the sun's northeastern limb. Click on the image to view a 3-day movie from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/577/1aa1.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/577/1aa1.jpg/'>
Among the three, the leading sunspot AR1260 is most active. It has produced more than a dozen C-class flares in the past 24 hours, more than doubling the total for the entire month of July so far. New sunspot AR1262, however, could eventually cause more trouble.
Magnetograms of the active region reveal a delta-class magnetic field that harbors energy for powerful X-class eruptions. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
July 29, 2011:
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered."
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered."
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
July 29, 2011:
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered."
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered."
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
July 29, 2011:
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered."
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered."
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
July 29, 2011:
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered.
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
WHAT LIES INSIDE JUPITER?
Jupiter's swirling clouds can be seen through any department store telescope. With no more effort than it takes to bend over an eyepiece, you can witness storm systems bigger than Earth navigating ruddy belts that stretch hundreds of thousands of kilometers around Jupiter's vast equator. It's fascinating.
It's also vexing. According to many researchers, the really interesting things--from the roots of monster storms to stores of exotic matter--are located at depth. The clouds themselves hide the greatest mysteries from view.
NASA's Juno probe, scheduled to launch on August 5th, could change all that. The goal of the mission is to answer the question, What lies inside Jupiter?
"Our knowledge of Jupiter is truly skin deep," says Juno's principal investigator, Scott Bolton of the SouthWest Research Institute in San Antonio, TX. "Even the Galileo probe, which dived into the clouds in 1995, penetrated no more than about 0.2% of Jupiter??s radius."
There are many basic things researchers would like to know—like how far down does the Great Red Spot go? How much water does Jupiter hold? And what is the exotic material near the planet's core?
Juno will lift the veil without actually diving through the clouds. Bolton explains how: "Swooping as low as 5000 km above the cloudtops, Juno will spend a full year orbiting nearer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft. The probe's flight path will cover all latitudes and longitudes, allowing us to fully map Jupiter's gravitational field and thus figure out how the interior is layered.
Jupiter is made primarily of hydrogen, but only the outer layers may be in gaseous form. Deep inside Jupiter, researchers believe, high temperatures and crushing pressures transform the gas into an exotic form of matter known as liquid metallic hydrogen--a liquid form of hydrogen akin to the slippery mercury in an old-fashioned thermometer. Jupiter's powerful magnetic field almost certainly springs from dynamo action inside this vast realm of electrically conducting fluid.
.....CONT'ED
------CONT'ED
"Juno's magnetometers will precisely map Jupiter's magnetic field," says Bolton. "This will tell us a great deal about the planet's inner magnetic dynamo [and the role liquid metallic hydrogen plays in it]."
Juno will also probe Jupiter's atmosphere using a set of microwave radiometers.
"Our sensors can measure the temperature and water content at depths where the pressure is 50 times greater than what the Galileo probe experienced," says Bolton.
Jupiter's water content is of particular interest. There are two leading theories of Jupiter's origin: One holds that Jupiter formed more or less where it is today, while the other suggests Jupiter formed at greater distances from the sun, later migrating to its current location. (Imagine the havoc a giant planet migrating through the solar system could cause.) The two theories predict different amounts of water in Jupiter's interior, so Juno should be able to distinguish between them—or rule out both.
Finally, Juno will get a grand view of the most powerful Northern Lights in the Solar System.
"Juno's polar orbit is ideal for studying Jupiter's auroras," explains Bolton. "They are really strong, and we don't fully understand how they are created."
Unlike Earth, which lights up in response to solar activity, Jupiter makes its own auroras. The power source is the giant planet's own rotation. Although Jupiter is ten times wider than Earth, it manages to spin around 2.5 times as fast as our little planet. As any freshman engineering student knows, if you spin a magnet—and Jupiter is a very big magnet—you've got an electric generator. Induced electric fields accelerate particles toward Jupiter's poles where the aurora action takes place. Remarkably, many of the particles that rain down on Jupiter's poles appear to be ejecta from volcanoes on Io. How this complicated system actually works is a puzzle.
It's a puzzle that members of the public will witness at close range thanks to JunoCam—a public outreach instrument modeled on the descent camera for Mars rover Curiosity. When Juno swoops low over the cloudtops, JunoCam will go to work, snapping pictures better than the best Hubble images of Jupiter.
"JunoCam will show us what you would see if you were an astronaut orbiting Jupiter," says Bolton. "I am looking forward to that in 2016."
"Juno's magnetometers will precisely map Jupiter's magnetic field," says Bolton. "This will tell us a great deal about the planet's inner magnetic dynamo [and the role liquid metallic hydrogen plays in it]."
Juno will also probe Jupiter's atmosphere using a set of microwave radiometers.
"Our sensors can measure the temperature and water content at depths where the pressure is 50 times greater than what the Galileo probe experienced," says Bolton.
Jupiter's water content is of particular interest. There are two leading theories of Jupiter's origin: One holds that Jupiter formed more or less where it is today, while the other suggests Jupiter formed at greater distances from the sun, later migrating to its current location. (Imagine the havoc a giant planet migrating through the solar system could cause.) The two theories predict different amounts of water in Jupiter's interior, so Juno should be able to distinguish between them—or rule out both.
Finally, Juno will get a grand view of the most powerful Northern Lights in the Solar System.
"Juno's polar orbit is ideal for studying Jupiter's auroras," explains Bolton. "They are really strong, and we don't fully understand how they are created."
Unlike Earth, which lights up in response to solar activity, Jupiter makes its own auroras. The power source is the giant planet's own rotation. Although Jupiter is ten times wider than Earth, it manages to spin around 2.5 times as fast as our little planet. As any freshman engineering student knows, if you spin a magnet—and Jupiter is a very big magnet—you've got an electric generator. Induced electric fields accelerate particles toward Jupiter's poles where the aurora action takes place. Remarkably, many of the particles that rain down on Jupiter's poles appear to be ejecta from volcanoes on Io. How this complicated system actually works is a puzzle.
It's a puzzle that members of the public will witness at close range thanks to JunoCam—a public outreach instrument modeled on the descent camera for Mars rover Curiosity. When Juno swoops low over the cloudtops, JunoCam will go to work, snapping pictures better than the best Hubble images of Jupiter.
"JunoCam will show us what you would see if you were an astronaut orbiting Jupiter," says Bolton. "I am looking forward to that in 2016."
ACTUAL PHOTO FROM AUSTRALIA
MAY 1, 2011
They are Mars, Jupiter, Venus and Mercury, shown here on May 1st in Australia:
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May. 1, 2011, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia (Image by: Stephen Mudge)
MAY 1, 2011
They are Mars, Jupiter, Venus and Mercury, shown here on May 1st in Australia:
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May. 1, 2011, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia (Image by: Stephen Mudge)
Wont happen again for many years. Im trying to find out how many exactly.
JULY 30th, 2011
STRONG FLARE:
Sunspot AR1261 unleashed a brief but strong M9-class solar flare on July 30th at 0209 UT. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the flare's extreme ultraviolet flash:
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Because of its brevity, the eruption probably did not hurl a substantial CME toward Earth, but this is not yet a firm conclusion. Stay tuned for additional analysis.
STRONG FLARE:
Sunspot AR1261 unleashed a brief but strong M9-class solar flare on July 30th at 0209 UT. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the flare's extreme ultraviolet flash:
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Because of its brevity, the eruption probably did not hurl a substantial CME toward Earth, but this is not yet a firm conclusion. Stay tuned for additional analysis.
JULY 30, 2011
SHAPE-SHIFTING SUNSPOT:
Three big sunspot groups are rotating across the Earth-facing side of the sun. One of them, AR1261, is morphing into a circular ring.
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The magnetic field of this shape-shifting sunspot is crackling with C- and M-class solar flares, including a powerful M9-blast to begin the day on July 30th. NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of more such flares during the next 24 hours. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
SHAPE-SHIFTING SUNSPOT:
Three big sunspot groups are rotating across the Earth-facing side of the sun. One of them, AR1261, is morphing into a circular ring.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/193/dancesj.gif/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/193/dancesj.gif/'>
The magnetic field of this shape-shifting sunspot is crackling with C- and M-class solar flares, including a powerful M9-blast to begin the day on July 30th. NOAA forecasters estimate a 40% chance of more such flares during the next 24 hours. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
Posted by WasteOfTime
I had a dream last night that the Earth stopped rotating.
That is very cool. What else do you remember? Were you scared? Indifferent?
Had you been reading or watching science related stuff?
Posted by WasteOfTimePosted by wgamador2Posted by WasteOfTime
I had a dream last night that the Earth stopped rotating.
That is very cool. What else do you remember? Were you scared? Indifferent?
Had you been reading or watching science related stuff?
Don't laugh at me, because I can't control the dreams I'm in lol. So they might not make a lot of sense to you. To me it made perfect sense while in the dream.
I remember there being a huge crater on what would be the north pole, except it was pushed outwards instead of sunk inwards. I remember some older guy telling me how the core of the Earth was just missing. I walked outside and I said that I could feel that the Earth wasn't rotating anymore. I don't remember who I was talking to, but I told someone they need to lay some type of explosive(s) around the rim of that huge crater. To blow it up and make it sink to the core of the Earth, in order to fix it. I don't remember what happened after that though :/, quite strange dream in my opinion. Yes I was a little scared but I still remained calm.click to expand
Hey man thats awesome. It was like you were some Geological-Engineer with a PHD in some real smart shit and knew what to do.....blow yourself up. hahahaha.
But seriously, you just came up with a short sci-fi story all thanks to your brain. its a truly magnificent organ. Real cool man, thanks for sharing.
The HST in Front of Jupiter
Picture by
Tom Harradine
Image taken:
Jul. 30, 2011
Location:
Brisbane, Australia
This morning I managed to catch the HST transit Jupiter. Location: Nudgee Beach, Brisbane, Australia Time: 6:24am 30th July 2011 (20:24UT 29th July) - 8min before sunrise, Altitude= 48.4?? Azimuth=346.1?? Taken with Canon EOS 550D at prime focus of 12?? f/5 Sky-Watcher Goto Dobsonian 640x480 60fps video crop mode, 1/2000s, ISO 400, Standard Picture style Duration of passage through the frame: 0.2 seconds HST: 567km above the Earth and 735 km away. Angular size about 4 arcseconds, magnitude 2.4 Jupiter: angular size 40 arcseconds, magnitude -2.3.
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" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/838/1aa1.jpg/'>
Picture by
Tom Harradine
Image taken:
Jul. 30, 2011
Location:
Brisbane, Australia
This morning I managed to catch the HST transit Jupiter. Location: Nudgee Beach, Brisbane, Australia Time: 6:24am 30th July 2011 (20:24UT 29th July) - 8min before sunrise, Altitude= 48.4?? Azimuth=346.1?? Taken with Canon EOS 550D at prime focus of 12?? f/5 Sky-Watcher Goto Dobsonian 640x480 60fps video crop mode, 1/2000s, ISO 400, Standard Picture style Duration of passage through the frame: 0.2 seconds HST: 567km above the Earth and 735 km away. Angular size about 4 arcseconds, magnitude 2.4 Jupiter: angular size 40 arcseconds, magnitude -2.3.
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JULY 30th, 2011
BIG SUNSPOTS: (UPDATE)
The finest display of sunspots since 2006 is underway.
Three behemoth sunspot groups are transiting the sun's northern hemisphere, shown here in a July 31st image from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
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Among the three, sunspot 1261 is most active. The multi-cored group has a beta-gamma-delta class magnetic field that harbors energy for X-class solar flares. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
BIG SUNSPOTS: (UPDATE)
The finest display of sunspots since 2006 is underway.
Three behemoth sunspot groups are transiting the sun's northern hemisphere, shown here in a July 31st image from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/62/1aa1c.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/62/1aa1c.jpg/'>
Among the three, sunspot 1261 is most active. The multi-cored group has a beta-gamma-delta class magnetic field that harbors energy for X-class solar flares. Readers with solar telescopes are encouraged to monitor developments.
AUGUST 1, 2011
SUNSPOT SUNSET:
The biggest sunspots of Solar Cycle 24 are showing themselves through the clouds at sunset. "Yesterday evening we had a nice view of AR1260, AR1261, and AR1263 from my farm east of Plymouth, Iowa," says Steve Yezek. Two of them are circled in this snapshot:
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Caution: Even when the sun is dimmed by low-hanging clouds or haze, focused sunlight can still damage your eyes. Do not look at the sun through unfiltered optics of any kind. A White Light Solar Observing System is the best way to monitor these great sunspots
SUNSPOT SUNSET:
The biggest sunspots of Solar Cycle 24 are showing themselves through the clouds at sunset. "Yesterday evening we had a nice view of AR1260, AR1261, and AR1263 from my farm east of Plymouth, Iowa," says Steve Yezek. Two of them are circled in this snapshot:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/11/1aa1r.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/11/1aa1r.jpg/'>
Caution: Even when the sun is dimmed by low-hanging clouds or haze, focused sunlight can still damage your eyes. Do not look at the sun through unfiltered optics of any kind. A White Light Solar Observing System is the best way to monitor these great sunspots
July 29, 2011
Comet Garradd Headed for
February 2012 Rendezvous with the Sun.
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Comet Garradd photographed July 2011 in its orbit toward
rendezvous with our sun in February 2012. Image ?? 2011 John Chumack.
NASA: —Another icy space ball is falling toward the Sun. Comet Garradd was discovered two years ago by Gordon Garradd in Australia, and is currently visible through a small telescope at visual magnitude 9. Officially designated C/2009 P1 (Garradd), the comet will likely continue to brighten, with recent projections placing it at peak magnitude six or seven in February 2012, just below naked eye visibility. Comet Garradd is already showing a short tail and is seen as the elongated fuzzy patch in the above negative image recorded earlier in July 2011. Other comets are also currently falling into the inner Solar System and brightening as well, including C/2010 X1 (Elenin), expected to peak near magnitude 6 in early September 2011, 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova expected to peak brighten past magnitude eight in mid-August 2011, and C/2011 L4 (PANSTARRS) which may become visible to the unaided eye during the early months of 2013.
Comet Garradd Headed for
February 2012 Rendezvous with the Sun.
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Comet Garradd photographed July 2011 in its orbit toward
rendezvous with our sun in February 2012. Image ?? 2011 John Chumack.
NASA: —Another icy space ball is falling toward the Sun. Comet Garradd was discovered two years ago by Gordon Garradd in Australia, and is currently visible through a small telescope at visual magnitude 9. Officially designated C/2009 P1 (Garradd), the comet will likely continue to brighten, with recent projections placing it at peak magnitude six or seven in February 2012, just below naked eye visibility. Comet Garradd is already showing a short tail and is seen as the elongated fuzzy patch in the above negative image recorded earlier in July 2011. Other comets are also currently falling into the inner Solar System and brightening as well, including C/2010 X1 (Elenin), expected to peak near magnitude 6 in early September 2011, 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova expected to peak brighten past magnitude eight in mid-August 2011, and C/2011 L4 (PANSTARRS) which may become visible to the unaided eye during the early months of 2013.
July 28, 2011
Earth's First —Trojan Asteroid?? Discovered
2010 TK7 is an asteroid companion of Earth's (white spot at center of above
infrared image) not discovered until April 2010, by scientists at the Canada France Hawaii
Telescope on a Hawaiian mountaintop. The asteroid is about 300 meters across (984 feet).
Currently it is some 20 million kilometers ahead of Earth's orbit around the sun.
Image by Martin Connors, Paul Wiegert and Christian Veillet in 07-26-11 Nature.
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" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/233/36764791.jpg/'>
—It was realized in 1772 that small bodies can stably share the same orbit as a planet if they remain near —triangular points?? 60?? ahead of or behind in the planet's orbit. Such —Trojan asteroids?? have been found co-orbiting with Jupiter, Mars and Neptune. ... Here we report an archival search of infrared data for possible Earth Trojans, producing the candidate 2010 TK7 that is a Trojan companion of Earth, librating around the leading Lagrange triangular point, L4. Its orbit is stable over at least ten thousand years.?? See July 27, 2011, Nature.
Earth's First —Trojan Asteroid?? Discovered
2010 TK7 is an asteroid companion of Earth's (white spot at center of above
infrared image) not discovered until April 2010, by scientists at the Canada France Hawaii
Telescope on a Hawaiian mountaintop. The asteroid is about 300 meters across (984 feet).
Currently it is some 20 million kilometers ahead of Earth's orbit around the sun.
Image by Martin Connors, Paul Wiegert and Christian Veillet in 07-26-11 Nature.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/233/36764791.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/233/36764791.jpg/'>
—It was realized in 1772 that small bodies can stably share the same orbit as a planet if they remain near —triangular points?? 60?? ahead of or behind in the planet's orbit. Such —Trojan asteroids?? have been found co-orbiting with Jupiter, Mars and Neptune. ... Here we report an archival search of infrared data for possible Earth Trojans, producing the candidate 2010 TK7 that is a Trojan companion of Earth, librating around the leading Lagrange triangular point, L4. Its orbit is stable over at least ten thousand years.?? See July 27, 2011, Nature.
AUGUST 4th, 2011
STRONG SOLAR ACTIVITY:
For the third day in a row, active sunspot 1261 has unleashed a significant M-class solar flare. The latest blast at 0357 UT on August 4th registered M9.3 on the Richter Scale of Flares, almost crossing the threshold into X-territory (X-flares are the most powerful kind). The number of energetic protons around Earth has jumped nearly 100-fold as a result of this event.
The eruption propelled a bright coronal mass ejection (CME)toward Earth recorded by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/13/1aa1.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/13/1aa1.jpg/'>
Moving at an estimated speed of 1950 km/s, this CME is expected to sweep up an earlier CME already en route. Analysts at the GSFC Space Weather Lab say the combined cloud should reach Earth on August 5th at 10:00 UT plus or minus 7 hours: "The impact on Earth is likely to be major. The estimated maximum geomagnetic activity index level Kp is 7 (Kp ranges from 0 - 9). The flanks of the CME may also impact STEREO A, Mars and Mercury/MESSENGER." High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras.
STRONG SOLAR ACTIVITY:
For the third day in a row, active sunspot 1261 has unleashed a significant M-class solar flare. The latest blast at 0357 UT on August 4th registered M9.3 on the Richter Scale of Flares, almost crossing the threshold into X-territory (X-flares are the most powerful kind). The number of energetic protons around Earth has jumped nearly 100-fold as a result of this event.
The eruption propelled a bright coronal mass ejection (CME)toward Earth recorded by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/13/1aa1.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/13/1aa1.jpg/'>
Moving at an estimated speed of 1950 km/s, this CME is expected to sweep up an earlier CME already en route. Analysts at the GSFC Space Weather Lab say the combined cloud should reach Earth on August 5th at 10:00 UT plus or minus 7 hours: "The impact on Earth is likely to be major. The estimated maximum geomagnetic activity index level Kp is 7 (Kp ranges from 0 - 9). The flanks of the CME may also impact STEREO A, Mars and Mercury/MESSENGER." High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras.
AUGUST 6th, 2011
SUBSIDING STORM:
Earth's magnetic field is still reverberating from a CME strike on August 5th that sparked one of the strongest geomagnetic storms in years. Registering 8 on the 0 to 9 "K-index" scale of magnetic disturbances, the storm at maximum sparked auroras across Europe and in many northern-tier US states. Travis Novitsky sends this picture from Grand Portage, Minnesota:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/28/16008713.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/28/16008713.jpg/'>
"For an hour and a half the sky was filled with dancing lights, some of the best I've ever seen in Northern Minnesota!" says Novitsky.
The storm is subsiding now, but it could flare up again as gusty solar wind continues to buffet Earth's magnetic field. High-latitude sky watchers should remain alert for auroras.
SUBSIDING STORM:
Earth's magnetic field is still reverberating from a CME strike on August 5th that sparked one of the strongest geomagnetic storms in years. Registering 8 on the 0 to 9 "K-index" scale of magnetic disturbances, the storm at maximum sparked auroras across Europe and in many northern-tier US states. Travis Novitsky sends this picture from Grand Portage, Minnesota:
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/28/16008713.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/28/16008713.jpg/'>
"For an hour and a half the sky was filled with dancing lights, some of the best I've ever seen in Northern Minnesota!" says Novitsky.
The storm is subsiding now, but it could flare up again as gusty solar wind continues to buffet Earth's magnetic field. High-latitude sky watchers should remain alert for auroras.
August 11, 2011
New NASA Photo of Comet Elenin.
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NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory
(STEREO) spacecraft used its wide angle HI-2 camera to image small,
greenish Comet Elenin. From August 15 onward, the comet enters the HI-1 telescope's
nominal field of view for continuous Comet Elenin monitoring. Elenin should be
at its brightest shortly before closest approach to Earth on October 16, 2011,
22 million miles (35 million km) - too far to have any appreciable effect on
our planet. Russian astronomer Leonid Elenin discovered the comet last
December at International Scientific Optical Network's
robotic observatory near Mayhill, New Mexico.
New NASA Photo of Comet Elenin.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/829/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/829/2aabc.jpg/'>
NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory
(STEREO) spacecraft used its wide angle HI-2 camera to image small,
greenish Comet Elenin. From August 15 onward, the comet enters the HI-1 telescope's
nominal field of view for continuous Comet Elenin monitoring. Elenin should be
at its brightest shortly before closest approach to Earth on October 16, 2011,
22 million miles (35 million km) - too far to have any appreciable effect on
our planet. Russian astronomer Leonid Elenin discovered the comet last
December at International Scientific Optical Network's
robotic observatory near Mayhill, New Mexico.
August 11, 2011
Is Salty Water Flowing Seasonally On Mars?
There might be a lot of water in the upper three feet of Martian soil. That means there could be microbes with that water and those microbes might be releasing methane - at least one hypothesis for the methane replenishment mystery in the Martian atmosphere.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/641/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/641/2aabc.jpg/'>
Image credit: HiRISE, MRO, LPL (U. Arizona), NASA.
NASA reports: These brown streaks appear in the Martian spring and summer,
but fade in the winter months, only to reappear again the next summer. The guess is
these are salty ice melts inside Newton crater in a mid-southern region of Mars.
They are not the first markings to show the effects of running water, but they are the first to
add the clue of seasonal dependence. The above picture, taken in May 2011, digitally
combines several images from the the HiRISE instrument on the Mars Reconnaissance
Orbiter (MRO). —Future observations with robotic spacecraft orbiting Mars,
such as MRO, Mars Express, and Mars Odyssey will continue to monitor
the situation and possibly confirm -- or refute -- the exciting flowing
water hypothesis.??
Is Salty Water Flowing Seasonally On Mars?
There might be a lot of water in the upper three feet of Martian soil. That means there could be microbes with that water and those microbes might be releasing methane - at least one hypothesis for the methane replenishment mystery in the Martian atmosphere.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/641/2aabc.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/641/2aabc.jpg/'>
Image credit: HiRISE, MRO, LPL (U. Arizona), NASA.
NASA reports: These brown streaks appear in the Martian spring and summer,
but fade in the winter months, only to reappear again the next summer. The guess is
these are salty ice melts inside Newton crater in a mid-southern region of Mars.
They are not the first markings to show the effects of running water, but they are the first to
add the clue of seasonal dependence. The above picture, taken in May 2011, digitally
combines several images from the the HiRISE instrument on the Mars Reconnaissance
Orbiter (MRO). —Future observations with robotic spacecraft orbiting Mars,
such as MRO, Mars Express, and Mars Odyssey will continue to monitor
the situation and possibly confirm -- or refute -- the exciting flowing
water hypothesis.??
AUGUST 13, 2011
SPACE STATION METEOR:
On August 13th during the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, ISS astronaut Ron Garan photographed a spectacular fireball from Earth orbit.
NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office confirms that the meteor was likely a Perseid, as opposed to a sporadic (random) meteoroid.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/836/2bbb.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/836/2bbb.jpg/'>
SPACE STATION METEOR:
On August 13th during the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, ISS astronaut Ron Garan photographed a spectacular fireball from Earth orbit.
NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office confirms that the meteor was likely a Perseid, as opposed to a sporadic (random) meteoroid.
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/836/2bbb.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/836/2bbb.jpg/'>
VENUS AND THE SOLAR STORM:
(Note: No planets were harmed in the production of this photo.)
Yesterday, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
a spectacular explosion on the sun that seemed to pass perilously close to Venus.
Did the cloudy planet survive?
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/607/15492388.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/607/15492388.jpg/'>
The CME passed harmlessly. There was no collision, and it wasn't even close.
Although Venus seems to be near the sun, the planet is actually more than 100 million kilometers away.
The two bodies are "in conjunction" this week as Venus moves almost directly behind the sun.
Because of this arrangement, more CME-Venus conjunctions are possible in the days ahead.
(Note: No planets were harmed in the production of this photo.)
Yesterday, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
a spectacular explosion on the sun that seemed to pass perilously close to Venus.
Did the cloudy planet survive?
" data-url="http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/607/15492388.jpg/'>
" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/607/15492388.jpg/'>
The CME passed harmlessly. There was no collision, and it wasn't even close.
Although Venus seems to be near the sun, the planet is actually more than 100 million kilometers away.
The two bodies are "in conjunction" this week as Venus moves almost directly behind the sun.
Because of this arrangement, more CME-Venus conjunctions are possible in the days ahead.
Everevolving,
Galaxy VV340 is just amazing. I looked for more pics and was so blown away.
Thanks for contributing to the thread.
and as always, anyone is welcomed to contribute.
So thanks in advance.
Galaxy VV340 is just amazing. I looked for more pics and was so blown away.
Thanks for contributing to the thread.
and as always, anyone is welcomed to contribute.
So thanks in advance.
EPIC.
Posted by everevolvingepithet
Cool pic wg.
It'd be nice to live somewhere close to an area without any light pollution.
Only seen the night sky a few times like that (both Hemispheres though😛), it's nuts what you can see in those conditions.
Pretty cool....i was wondering what the other stuff in the pic were and they are answered in this vid.
Just brilliant.
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