What's
Up in Space --
26
Apr
2004
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AURORA
WATCH:
A geomagnetic storm is possible during the next 24 hours as
Earth eases into a solar wind stream flowing from a coronal
hole. If auroras appear, the best displays will be at high
latitudes--e.g.,
Canada and northern-tier US states such as Minnesota, Wisconsin
and Michigan. [April
aurora gallery]
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PHONE.
MORNING
COMET:
Comet Bradfield (C/2004 F4), which flew
by the Sun on April 17th, is emerging now from the Sun's
glare. Look for it rising in the eastern sky just before dawn.
The comet is barely visible to the naked eye, but it's a beautiful
sight through binoculars. [sky
map] [ephemeris]
Japanese photographer Sho
Endo took this picture of the comet, a 27-sec exposure
on 400-speed film, on April 24th:
On
April 27th, Homam Hosseini
saw the comet from Tehran, Iran. "At first I noticed
a faint band of light, like a light projector pointing into
the sky from behind the hills," says Hosseini. "When
I looked through binoculars I could easily see fine details
in the milky tail. Later, the entire comet rose above the
hillside." [photo]
more
images: from
Brian Whittaker in an airplane 35,000 ft above Newfoundland,
Canada (Apr. 24); from
Jimmy Westlake near Steamboat Springs, Colorado (Apr.
26); from
Anthony Arrigo of Park City, Utah (Apr. 26); from
Pete Lawrence of Selsey, West Sussex, UK (Apr. 26); from
Giovanni Sostero on Mont Colovrat, Italy (Apr. 25); from
Sho Endo at Chiba, Japan (Apr. 24); from
Luis Carreira of Leiria, Portugal (Apr. 24); from
Rolando Ligustri of Latisana, Italy (Apr. 25); from
Alessandro Dimai at Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy (Apr. 25);
PLANETS
GALORE:
When the sun goes down tonight, look west. The sky is full
of planets. Venus is the first one you'll notice, so bright
it's often mistaken for a UFO. The Moon, Saturn, Mars and
Jupiter are there, too. Get the full
story from Science@NASA.
Above:
On April 23rd the crescent Moon glided by Venus. Andrew
Greenwood of Kerridge, Cheshire, England, captured the
encounter using his digital camera. Pictured above is a series
of half-second exposures taken at two minute intervals. "The
stacking of the images was done as per described in a recent
Sky and Telescope article on creating star trails with digital
cameras," says Greenwood.
COMET
LINEAR: Comet
Bradfield isn't the only early-morning comet. Comet LINEAR
(C/2002 T7) is there, too, together with Bradfield in the
constellation Pisces. Both are about as bright as a 4th magnitude
star. When you find one comet, scan back and forth with binoculars;
you'll probably be able to find the other. Bradfield is the
one with the longer, brighter tail. [sky
map] [ephemeris]
SPACE WEATHER
SPACE WEATHER
