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."
#AURORAS OVER AN ACTIVE #VOLCANO: For the seventh time in less than a year, #Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula has erupted, spewing molten lava from a fissure almost 2 miles long. Wioleta Gorecka photographed the volcanic glow underneath a curtain of auroras on Nov. 21st:
"I arrived at Reykjanesviti around 7:30 PM and was surprised by the absence of other people, as the view from this spot was absolutely stunning!" says Gorecka. "I set up my camera on an icy walkway to steaming hot springs near the eruption. The magic of this place was astonishing!"
For 800 years, this corner of Iceland was quiet--until March 19, 2021, when a long dormant volcano re-awakened. Historical accounts and ancient lava flows show that whenever volcanoes in the area erupt, they can remain active for decades or even centuries. This might not be the last photo mixing geomagnetic and geologic emissions.
ARCTIC #AURORAS: As expected, a #CME hit #Earth on Nov. 7th. The glancing blow was so subtle that, at first, it did not trigger our CME alarms. As Earth moved into the CME's wake, however, it became clear that a solar storm had arrived. Auroras spread around the Arctic Circle, including these over Fáskrúðsfjörður, #Iceland:
"Beautiful #Northern-Lights could be seen tonight despite the clouds," says photographer Jónína Óskarsdóttir. "It was very windy and +11°C, which is unusual in November."
https://spaceweather.com/
THE #SKY EXPLODED': A CME gently grazed Earth's magnetic field on Oct. 26th. At first it seemed like nothing would happen. Then, "the sky exploded," says Terence Murtagh, who took this picture using his iPhone 16 outside Tromso in #Norway:
"In many decades of viewing and photographing #auroras, I've never seen so many spectacular bright multicoloured coronas bursting over the sky," he says. "I couldn't believe my eyes as a small group of us were transfixed by this cosmic kaleidoscope. It was probably caused by the tail of the weak CME.
#X-ray #Solar #Flares
6-hr max: C8 0324 UT Oct27
24-hr: M8 0820 UT Oct26
https://youtube.com/watch?v=inRzIx_xY3U
A quick summary of why we are getting #auroras now at low latitudes.
HE STRONGEST #FLARE YET: Sunspot AR3842 exploded again today, producing the strongest #solarflare of Solar Cycle 25 so far. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the #X9.1-category blast:
#Radiation from the flare ionized the top of #Earth's atmosphere and caused a deep shortwave blackout over Africa and the South Atlantic. Ham radio operators in the area may have noticed loss of signal at frequencies below 30 MHz for as much as a half an hour after 12:18 UTC.
Of greater interest is the #CME. Preliminary SOHO coronagraph images show a halo CME emerging from the blast site. This CME will probably strike Earth on Oct. 6th, adding its effect to that of an earlier CME expected to arrive on Oct. 4th. #Auroras are therefore likely this weekend.
#X-ray #SolarFlares
6-hr max: #X8 1218 UT Oct03
24-hr: X8 1218 UT Oct03
RARE #BLUE #AURORAS CAUSED BY RESONANT SCATTERING: The severe geomagnetic storm of Sept. 16-17 produced something that even longtime #aurora watchers rarely see: Blue Auroras. "I photographed them at dawn on Sept. 17th," says Alan Dyer, who sends this picture from Gleichen, #Alberta:
Auroras are usually green and red. Blue is very unusual. It takes a strong geomagnetic storm to produce them -- plus one extra ingredient. "High altitude sunlight was hitting the blue rays," explains Dyer.
The process is called "resonant scattering." At the top of the aurora zone, ionized nitrogen molecules (N2+) naturally produce blue light. The blue glow is usually too faint to see. However, when these ions get hit by morning sunlight, they capture and re-emit photons from the sun, amplifying the blue color
Göran Strand photographed a rainbow-outburst of #auroras over Östersund, #Sweden:
#X-ray #SolarFlares
6-hr max: M1 1756 UT Sep13
24-hr: M5 0656 UT Sep13
#CME IMPACT SPARKS GEOMAGNETIC STORM: Geomagnetic storms are underway following the arrival of a CME on Aug. 27th. At first, the CME's impact appeared weak and, indeed, it did not cause an immediate geomagnetic storm. Since then, however, magnetic fields in the CME's wake have linked to Earth's magnetic field, causing storms of category G2 (with a chance of G3) on Aug. 28th. CME impact alerts: SMS Text
"This morning, on August 28, 2024, around 1 AM (UTC) faint #auroras appeared over the #Czech-Republic," reports Petr Horálek, who sends this picture from the shore of Seč Lake:
"What a year, so many auroras from central Europe have not been visible since 2001!" he says.
#AURORAS SHOULD NOT BE ORANGE (BUT THEY ARE): During this week's severe (G4-class) geomagnetic storm, Tony Bendele of Pennsylvania saw something rare and a little mysterious. "Orange auroras!" he says. "Yes, #Orange. I had never seen this color in auroras before." He took this picture before sunrise on Aug. 12th:
"At first, I thought something was wrong, so I checked this image numerous times. The color orange is really there," he says.
What's so mysterious about orange? Auroras get their colors from specific atoms and molecules in Earth’s atmosphere. For instance, green is due to oxygen, while pink comes from nitrogen. The problem is, there’s nothing in the air capable of making bright orange.
Theoretically, nitrogen and oxygen (N2, N2+, and O2+) can produce emissions at orange wavelengths. However, these emissions are very weak compared to other competing colors produced by the same molecules. Auroras should not be orange.
#auroras over Minnesota:
"My grandson is a huge space weather enthusiast and he was thrilled to watch the beautiful Northern Lights with me tonight," says photographer Greg Ash of Ely, MN. While Ash's family watched the display from Minnesota, photographic red auroras descended as far south as Nebraska.
Minor storming is expected to continue as Earth moves through the magnetized wake of these CMEs. Storm levels could jump to category G2 if another CME arrives on Aug. 1st,
THE #SUN IS LITERALLY CRACKLING WITH #FLARES: Seldom is the sun peppered with so many unstable sunspots. Today, there are at least 7 active regions capable of producing strong Earth-directed solar flares. This time-compressed movie shows the past 24 hours of explosions:
All of these are strong M-class solar flares. An even stronger X-flare may be in the offing with radio blackouts and perhaps a CME
X-ray #SolarFlares
6-hr max: M8 0709 UT Aug01
24-hr: M8 0709 UT Aug01
https://spaceweather.com/
#AURORAS IN #AFRICA: For the first time in more than 30 years, Spaceweather.com has received photos of auroras in Africa. They appeared during the historic geomagnetic storm on May 10, 2024. The latest submissions come from Tivoli Astro Farm in Namibia where Richard Payne photographed the display:
"We could see the auroras with the naked eye," says Payne. "Visually, it was a deep red and very large--about 45 degrees vertical and 135 degrees horizontal." Another guest at the farm, Georg Woeber, also saw the sky turn red. "It was amazing to see this happen from the Tropic of Capricorn (23° S)," says Woeber.
RARE SOUTH PACIFIC #AURORAS CONFIRM 'GREAT STORM': On the south Pacific island of New Caledonia, no one expects to see auroras. Ever. Situated about halfway between Tonga and Australia, the cigar-shaped island is too close to the equator for Northern or Southern Lights. Yet on May 10, 2024, this happened:
"I have rarely been so happy when taking a photo!" says Frédéric Desmoulins, who photographed the display from Boulouparis in the island's south province. "I could see the red color of the auroras with my naked eye. According to the New Caledonian Astronomy Society, these photos are the first for this territory."
"The auroral visibility from New Caledonia is really unique and extremely valuable," says Hisashi Hayakawa, a space weather researcher at Japan's Nagoya University. "As far as we know, the last time sky watchers saw auroras in the area was during the Carrington Event of Sept. 1859, when auroras were sighted from a ship in the Coral Sea."
Hayakawa specializes in historical studies of great auroral storms. He tries to go back in time as far as possible. The problem is, magnetometers and modern sensors didn't exist hundreds or thousands of years ago. Instead, he looks for records of aurora sightings in old newspapers, diaries, ships logs, even cuneiform tablets. Great Storms are identified by their low latitude--anything with naked-eye auroras below 30° MLAT (magnetic latitude).
#AURORAS OVER THE GRAND CANYON: You know a #solar-storm is big when it produces auroras over the #GrandCanyon. Brian A. Klimowski photographed the rare display on May 11, #2024:
Great #auroras all over northern hemisphere
Keep cool, keep in shade, make sure of staying hydrated.
Reduce use of electric grids and appliances, disconnect TVs and antennas when possible.
Entertain children , seniors and animals around you .
Life principles bind us with uncommon intelligence and wisdom.
