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FULL
SNOW MOON: There's a full Moon
tonight. According to folklore it is the "Snow
Moon," named by Native Americans after the
heavy snows of February. In North America, snow
has been in
short supply, but the white tide is turning
in Europe as winter storms sweep across the continent.
Wherever you are, enjoy the cold
moonlight.
M-CLASS
SOLAR FLARE: Departing sunspot
AR1410 is growing in size and magnetic complexity
as it approaches the sun's northwestern limb. The
region is now crackling with solar flares, highlighted
by this M1-class
eruption on Feb. 6th at 20:01 UT:
NOAA forecasters estimate a 30% chance
of more M-flares during the next 24 hours. Any eruptions
from AR1410 are unlikely to be Earth-directed as
the active region continues to turn away from our
planet. Solar flare
alerts: text,
voice.
AURORA
WATCH:
Earth passed through a minor solar wind stream on
Feb. 4-5. The weak impact of the solar wind was
just enough to spark auroras around parts of the
Arctic Circle. Frank Olsen sends this 20-second
exposure from the waterfront outside Tromsø, Norway:
"Despite bright moonlight and
low solar activity, there were some great auroras
last night," says Olsen.
The effects of the solar wind are
subsiding, and the auroras might disappear into
the moonlight for the next few nights. Geomagnetic
activity is expected to hover at low levels for
the next 48 hours.
Aurora alerts: text,
voice.
more images: from
Oivind Toien of Fairbanks, Alaska; from
Fredrik Broms of Kvaløya, Norway
BE ALERT
FOR MOON HALOES: With the full
Moon just days away, now is the time to be alert
for Moon haloes. Tom Soetaert photographed this
spooky specimen over Lawrence, Kansas, on Feb. 2nd:
Moon halos are formed by ice crystals
in high clouds, which catch moonbeams and bend them
as
shown. The brighter the Moon, the brighter the
Moon halo, so any halos this weekend should be very
bright indeed. The Moon is full on Feb. 7th. Browse
the links below for more examples of what's in store.
more images: from
Chris Cook of Cape Cod, Massachusetts; from
Joni Niemelä of Western Finland; from
Mike Peters of Green Bay, Wisconsin; from
Tamas Ladanyi of Veszprem (Hungary); from
Schmaus Thomas of Oberbernbach, Bavaria, Germany;
from
Domenico Licchelli of Gagliano del Capo, Italy;
from
Primoz Kuk of Sempeter pri Gorici, Slovenia;
from
Dr. Salvador Aguirre of Hermosillo, Sonora,
Mexico; from
György Soponyai of Dunakeszi, Hungary
January
2012 Aurora Gallery
[previous Januaries: 2010,
2009,
2008,
2007, 2005,
2004]
Comet
Lovejoy Gallery
[previous comets: McNaught,
Holmes,
Lulin,
Tuttle,
Ikeya-Zhang]
