Earth is entering a minor solar wind stream that could spark auroras around the Arctic Circle. High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for Northern Lights tonight.Solar windspeed: 452.2 km/secdensity: 1.5 protons/cm3The Radio Sun10.7 cm
Last night, NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) observed an unusual event on the sun: An erupting cloud of plasma was eclipsed by a dark magnetic filament.The source of the explosion is a farside active region due to turn toward Earth in a few days. For now,
After three days of meteoric growth, sunspot AR1363 has reversed course and is beginning to decay. As its magnetic field relaxes, the active region poses a subsiding threat for strong flares. It’s not dead yet, though, as this snapshot shows: There is still a slim
Sunspot AR1363 is growing rapidly, more than doubling in size since Friday. A 48-hour movie from NASA’s SOlar Dynamic Observatory shows the expansion:The active region has a “beta-gamma” magnetic field that harbors energy for M-class solar flares. Because of
A magnetic filament rapidly erupted on the sun today. Between 10:30 and 11:30 UTC, observers in Europe watched tendrils of hot plasma rocket away from the sun’s NW limb. Debris from the explosion is not expected to hit Earth according to SpaceWeather. Solar
With no strong flares this week, the sun’s x-ray output has nearly flatlined. The solar activity is quiet and is expected to continue for another 24+ hours. NOAA forecasters estimate a mere 20% chance of M-class solar flares.C-Class flares continue to be detected
With no sunspots producing strong flares, the sun is officially quiet. But although the sun is officialy “quiet” multiple C-Class flares have been detected within the past 24 hours. C-Class flares continue to be detected around various locations on the visible solar
A solar wind stream is buffeting Earth’s magnetic field and this is causing electrical currents to flow in the Earth itself at high latitudes.Rob Stammes sends this report from the Polar Light Center in Lofoten, Norway to SpaceWeather.com “Today, a magnetic
Two new regions rotated into view on the eastern limb and were numbered 1363 and 1364 on Tuesday. Numerous low level C-Class flares have been detected within the past 24 hours around Sunspot 1362 and new Sunspot 1363.Region 1361 in the northern hemisphere is now
A line of sunspots stretching across the sun’s northern hemisphere appears to be an independent sequence of dark cores. A telescope tuned to the red glow of solar hydrogen, however, reveals something different. The sunspots are connected by sinuous filaments of
