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SpaceWeather.com -- News and information about meteor showers, solar flares, auroras, and near-Earth asteroids
 
Solar wind
speed: 289.9 km/sec
density: 0.4 protons/cm3
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2347 UT
X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: C4
1701 UT Nov20
24-hr: C6
1647 UT Nov20
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at: 2300 UT
Daily Sun: 20 Nov 11
A significant sunspot might be emerging at the circled location. Readers with solar telescopes should point their optics at the NE limb. Credit: SDO/HMI
Sunspot number: 149
What is the sunspot number?
Updated 19 Nov 2011

Spotless Days
Current Stretch: 0 days
2011 total: 2 days (<1%)
2010 total: 51 days (14%)
2009 total: 260 days (71%)
Since 2004: 821 days
Typical Solar Min: 486 days

Updated 19 Nov 2011


The Radio Sun
10.7 cm flux: 144 sfu
explanation | more data
Updated 19 Nov 2011

Current Auroral Oval:
Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica
Credit: NOAA/POES
Planetary K-index
Now: Kp= 1 quiet
24-hr max: Kp= 1
quiet
explanation | more data
Interplanetary Mag. Field
Btotal: 4.5 nT
Bz: 1.8 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2347 UT
Coronal Holes: 20 Nov 11
There are no large coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun. Credit: SDO/AIA.
SPACE WEATHER
NOAA Forecasts
Updated at: 2011 Nov 20 2200 UTC
FLARE
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
CLASS M
30 %
30 %
CLASS X
01 %
01 %
Geomagnetic Storms:
Probabilities for significant disturbances in Earth's magnetic field are given for three activity levels: active, minor storm, severe storm
Updated at: 2011 Nov 20 2200 UTC
Mid-latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
05 %
05 %
MINOR
01 %
01 %
SEVERE
01 %
01 %
High latitudes
0-24 hr
24-48 hr
ACTIVE
10 %
10 %
MINOR
01 %
01 %
SEVERE
01 %
01 %
 
Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011
What's up in space
 

Turn your cell phone into a field-tested satellite tracker. Works for Android and iPhone.

 
Satellite flybys

ANTARCTIC SOLAR ECLIPSE: On Nov. 25th the Moon will pass in front of the sun, slightly off-center, producing a partial solar eclipse visible from Antarctica, Tasmania, and parts of South Africa and New Zealand. Maximum coverage occurs about 100 miles off the coast of Antarctica where the sun will appear to be a slender 9% crescent. [animated map]

LAST SUNSET: As northern winter approaches, darkness is enveloping the countries of the Arctic. In fact, today in Tromsø, Norway, night fell less than ten minutes after sunrise. Fredrik Broms photographed the sun during its few minutes above the horizon:

"After a long slow dawn, the sun rose for one of the last times of the year today," says Broms. "My girlfriend and I went out to say a last goodbye to the sun and minutes after sunrise the dusk began. Here in Tromsø the polar night period lasts from November 25 - January 17, but because of the surrounding mountains, the sun is due to set on November 22. Together with several other people who attended to pay a last farewell to the Sun today, we say thank you for 2011, sun. We'll see you again in January."

ACTIVE SUNSPOT: A new sunspot has emerged over the sun's NW limb and it could bring an uptick in solar activity. On Nov. 18th, the active region hurled a bright CME toward Venus, and on Nov. 19th it produced the following eruption, recorded by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory:

So far, Earth has been unaffected by the action of this sunspot group, but this could change as the region turns toward our planet in the days ahead. Stay tuned. Solar flare alerts: text, phone.

  Near Earth Asteroids
Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are space rocks larger than approximately 100m that can come closer to Earth than 0.05 AU. None of the known PHAs is on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.
On November 20, 2011 there were 1256 potentially hazardous asteroids.
Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
Asteroid
Date(UT)
Miss Distance
Mag.
Size
2011 FZ2
Nov 7
75.9 LD
--
1.6 km
2005 YU55
Nov 8
0.8 LD
11.2
400 m
2011 UT91
Nov 15
9.9 LD
--
109 m
1994 CK1
Nov 16
68.8 LD
--
1.5 km
1996 FG3
Nov 23
39.5 LD
--
1.1 km
2003 WM7
Dec 9
47.6 LD
--
1.6 km
1999 XP35
Dec 20
77.5 LD
--
1.0 km
2000 YA
Dec 26
2.9 LD
--
80 m
2011 SL102
Dec 28
75.9 LD
--
1.1 km
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. 1 LD also equals 0.00256 AU. MAG is the visual magnitude of the asteroid on the date of closest approach.
  Essential web links
NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
  The official U.S. government space weather bureau
Atmospheric Optics
  The first place to look for information about sundogs, pillars, rainbows and related phenomena.
Solar Dynamics Observatory
  Researchers call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO is the most advanced solar observatory ever.
STEREO
  3D views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial Relations Observatory
Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
  Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO.
Daily Sunspot Summaries
  from the NOAA Space Environment Center
Heliophysics
  the underlying science of space weather
Science Central
Trade Show Displays
   
  more links...
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