Sundiving comet

Sundiving comet

A comet is diving into the sun today. Discovered on Sept. 29th by a group of four independent comet hunters (M. Kusiak, S. Liwo, B. Zhou and Z. Xu), the icy visitor from the outer solar system is evaporating furiously as it approaches the hot star. SOHO (the Solar and

Solar wind blasts Mercury

Solar wind blasts Mercury

At a NASA teleconference yesterday, researchers working with data from the Messenger spacecraft offered new evidence that gusts of solar wind are penetrating Mercury’s magnetic field and eroding material off the planet’s surface. The spacecraft has actually flown

Real facts about comet Elenin statement by Leonid Elenin

Real facts about comet Elenin statement by Leonid Elenin

SpaceObs, website run by Leonid Elenin, the most mysterious amateur astronomer that discovered Comet C/2010 X1 or Comet Elenin.Elenin was visible on STEREO A HI1 from September 6th to the 22nd where it then moves out of the field of view.  To see it you need to

STEREO-SOHO detected six coronal mass ejections

STEREO-SOHO detected six coronal mass ejections

On Sept. 19th, the STEREO-SOHO fleet of spacecraft surrounding the sun detected six coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Two of the clouds rapidly dissipated. The remaining four, however, are still intact and billowing through the inner solar system. Click to view a movie of

Kreutz sungrazing comet seen diving into Sun

Kreutz sungrazing comet seen diving into Sun

On September 14, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) watched what happened when one comet got too close. Click on the arrow to play a 6-hour time lapse movie: One icy comet went in, none came out. Discovered on Sept. 13th by Michal Kusiak of Poland and…

New sunspots forming, Venus-directed CME

New sunspots forming, Venus-directed CME

Yesterday, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory witnessed a spectacular explosion on the sun that seemed to pass perilously close to Venus.As the movie shows, the CME passed harmlessly. There was no collision, and it wasn’t even close. Although Venus seems to be

Another M-class solar flare

Another M-class solar flare

A second M-Class flare, this time a M2.5 took place at 03:54 UTC Tuesday morning around Sunspot 1263. This is in addition to the earlier M3.5 flare which we reported yesterday. The first flare produced a small, but fast moving (2010 km/s) Coronal Mass Ejection…

Strong solar activity – M9.3 solar flare took place, expecting CMEs

Strong solar activity – M9.3 solar flare took place, expecting CMEs

Sunspot 1261 is at it again, this time producing a strong M9.3 Solar Flare at 03:57 UTC Thursday morning. It also turns out that yet another Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) was produced and you can see it in the still image below captured by STEREO Ahead.Proton Levels are o

M1.4 Earth-directed solar flare took place

M1.4 Earth-directed solar flare took place

Magnetic fields above sunspot 1261 erupted this morning at 0648 UT, producing an M1-class solar flare. The blast also hurled a bright coronal mass ejection toward Earth. This movie from the STEREO-Ahead spacecraft shows the cloud racing away from the sun at almost

Sundiving comet

Sundiving comet

During the late hours of July 5th, an unnamed icy comet from the outer solar system dove into the sun and disintegrated. Click on the arrow to witness the death plunge recorded by coronagraphs onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO):Over the years,