A #CME was supposed to narrowly miss #Earth today. Instead, it delivered a direct hit. The impact on Dec. 17th (0519 UT) sparked a #G1-class #geomagnetic #storm with bright #auroras over #Alaska:
"The reds were fully visible to the eye!" says photographer Sacha Layos of Fairbanks, AK. "A complete treat for the eyes and soul."
Space Weather Morning Report | S0 News Aug.12.2024
... level 3 aurora-making impact inbound ... ...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QMspOF0Ndns
#science #sun #solar #solarflare #cme #sunspot #polarshift #climate #aurora #climatechange #geomagnetic #geoelectric #weather #SpaceWeatherNews #Suspicious0bservers
THE STORM IS NOT OVER: A #CME hit #Earth's #magnetic field on May 10th, sparking the biggest #geomagnetic #storm in almost 20 years--an extreme (category G5) event. It is subsiding now (currently category G3), but it is not over. More CMEs are expected to hit Earth's magnetic field during the next 24-48 hours, and they could push the storm back to severe or even extreme levels
X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: M4 0220 UT May11
24-hr: X5 0123 UT May11
https://spaceweather.com/
An overdue #CME struck #Earth's #magnetic #field on March 3rd. The impact sparked a #G2-class #geomagnetic #storm and bright #auroras around the Arctic Circle. Jan Eklind photographed the display from the window seat of an Airbus A20N at 35,000 feet:
"I was flying from Oslo to Kirkenes on Scandinavian Airlines when the CME struck," says Eklind. "Auroras spread across the sky with twilight in the distance and city lights below."
The CME was hurled into space on Feb. 28th when a magnetic filament connected to sunspot AR3592 erupted. It was not aimed directly at Earth, and forecasters were unsure if it would deliver even a glancing blow; however, the impact was stronger than expected.
https://spaceweather.com/
A HOLE IN THE SUN'S ATMOSPHERE: A huge hole has opened in the sun's atmosphere, and it is directly facing Earth. Solar wind flowing from the hole will reach our planet on Dec. 4th or 5th. Its arrival should spark G1-class geomagnetic storms. #Aurora alerts: SMS Text
STRONG GEOMAGNETIC STORM: A Cannibal #CME struck Earth's magnetic field on Dec. 1st, sparking a strong G3-class #geomagnetic #storm with auroras in both hemispheres. "We witnessed an incredible show on the #Canterbury #coastline overlooking the Pacific Ocean," reports Mike White from #NewZealand. "The sound of waves crashing onto the beach and washing across the stony pebbles created the perfect soundtrack for these Southern Lights."
"The Cannibal CME arrived just as New Zealand skies were darkening. The resulting cloud of charged particles rained down Earth's magnetic field lines and delivered a light show that lasted for hours. It was easily visible to the naked eye."
What the Upcoming #Geomagnetic #Reversal Will Do to #Earth
There is a general agreement among the scientific community that we are overdue.
Published 10th November 2023 (16:27)
#CME SPARKS STRONG #GEOMAGNETIC #STORM: Earth's magnetic field is still reverberating from a fast-moving CME strike on Sept. 18th. The CME's arrival (a day earlier than expected) sparked a strong G3-class geomagnetic storm with auroras stretching from France to the West Coast of the USA.
Jeroen Daniels photographed the display from Edmonton, Alberta:
"As soon as the sun set I could see auroras dancing in the twilight sky," says Daniels. "The colours were unlike any that I have seen before--greens mixed with blues mixed with reds, orange, pink. It was amazing!"
At the apex of the storm, red atomic-oxygen auroras spread into the United States as far south as Colorado (+40.4N), Missouri (+40.1N), and Nebraska (+41.9N). It was a true mid-latitude event.
Not all the lights in the sky were auroras. Many observers also spotted STEVE--a glowing ribbon of purple light caused by currents of hot plasma flowing through Earth's magnetosphere. Michele Sadauskas photographed the phenomenon from Glidden, Wisconsin:
"When I stepped out of the truck, STEVE appeared vividly across the sky," says Sadauskas. "I quickly set up my pano rig and was pretty happy with the capture. This is the first time I've caught STEVE crossing all the way from east to west!"
Other notable sightings of STEVE were made in Montana, Michigan, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.
CIR SPARKS G2-CLASS #GEOMAGNETIC #STORM: If you've never heard of a CIR, there's only one thing you really need to know: CIRs are good at making auroras. One hit Earth yesterday and lit up both ends of our planet--north and south. "The display in #NewZealand was one for the ages," reports Ian Griffin from #Hoopers Inlet on the #Otago Peninsula:
"The #aurora kept pulsing and, just as you thought it was going to end it exploded into life again," he says. "What a night!"
Short for "co-rotating interaction regions," CIRs are transition zones between fast- and slow-moving solar wind streams. Solar wind plasma piles up in these regions, producing shock-like structures that mimic CMEs. NOAA correctly predicted the arrival of a CIR on June 15th. Its impact opened a crack in our planet's magnetic field, fueling a G2-class geomagnetic storm that persisted through June 16th.
Because of the northern summer sun, Arctic observers couldn't see the show. Some #auroras, however, did spill into darkness at lower latitudes. Jeff Berkes sends this photo from #Cape-Cod, #Massachusetts:
SEVERE #GEOMAGNETIC STORM: Arriving earlier than expected, a #CME hit #Earth's magnetic field on April 23rd at 1737 UT, sparking a severe G4-class geomagnetic storm. Auroras spread across Europe with sightings as far south as #France. Bright red auroras were also reported in #China.
The storm is still going on and it is producing visible auroras across North America. Mid-latitude sightings include North Carolina, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, California and Oklahoma.
"My pulse is still racing!" says Heiko Ulbricht, who watched the aurora show from Saxony, #Germany. "There were bright green spots dancing across the sky all the way up to the zenith." This is what he saw:
"This was a display not to be forgotten," he says. Similar green blobs were photographed in #Poland and France. These are unusual structures, which we will discuss further after the storm is over.
The auroras in Europe were so bright, they could be seen even from brightly-lit urban areas. Thomas Hunger sends this report from Berlin, Germany: "I run Northern Lights tours in Tromsø, Norway, but would have never dreamt of seeing auroras from my home town of Berlin. I stepped on the balcony and enjoyed a sight that in a city of 4 million inhabitants might just have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience."
