SPACE WEATHER
Current
Conditions

Solar Wind
speed: 460.5 km/s
density:1.3 protons/cm³
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2246 UT

X-ray Solar Flares
6-hr max: M1 2115 UT Aug20
24-hr: M3 0140 UT Aug20
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2245 UT

Daily Sun: 20 Aug '02
Sunspot 69 has a delta-class magnetic field that harbors energy for X-class solar flares. Image credit: SOHO/MDI

The Far Side of the Sun

This holographic image reveals some sunspots on the far side of the Sun. Image credit: SOHO/MDI

Sunspot Number: 247
More about sunspots
Updated: 19 Aug 2002

Coronal Holes:

There are no substantial coronal holes on the Earth-facing side of the Sun. Image credit: SOHO Extreme UV Telescope.
More about coronal holes

Interplanetary Mag. Field
B_total: 9.1 nT
B_z: 6.9 nT south
explanation | more data
Updated: Today at 2247 UT

Mid-latitudes

	0-24 hr	24-48 hr
ACTIVE	30 %	30 %
MINOR	15 %	15 %
SEVERE	05 %	05 %

High latitudes

	0-24 hr	24-48 hr
ACTIVE	35 %	35 %
MINOR	20 %	20 %
SEVERE	10 %	10 %

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What's Up in Space -- 20 Aug 2002 Subscribe to Space Weather News! BIG SUNSPOT: Giant sunspot 69 is impressive. It stretches nine Earth diameters from end to end and poses a threat for powerful X-class solar flares. You can see the spot yourself--but never look directly at the Sun. Use safe solar projection techniques instead. Above: Can you find sunspot 69 in this cloudy picture of the setting Sun? Click here for a hint. Image credit: Gunther Groenez. MAGNETIC IMPACT: A coronal mass ejection struck Earth's magnetic field on August 18th at 1848 UT (2:48 p.m. EDT) and triggered a G1-class geomagnetic storm, which has since subsided. Sky watchers in northern Europe and Canada saw Northern Lights. NEARBY ASTEROID: Asteroid 2002 NY40 came so close to Earth on August 18th that people could see it through binoculars or small telescopes. "It moved very quickly against the background field of stars. Very impressive, and a hard object to find and keep in the field of view," says Canadian amateur astronomer Lance Taylor, who used a 7-inch telescope to view the asteroid. "Visually it looked almost like a satellite--just farther away." [gallery] METEOR SHOWER: The annual Perseid meteor shower peaked on August 12th and 13th. This year's shower was perhaps less impressive than usual. Nevertheless, sky watchers spotted plenty of bright shooting stars--including some colorful earthgrazers. Visit our photo gallery and see for yourself. WEB LINKS: NOAA FORECAST | GLOSSARY | SPACE WEATHER TUTORIAL | LESSON PLANS | BECOME A SUBSCRIBER

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 are on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.

August 2002 Earth-asteroid encounters

ASTEROID		MISS DISTANCE	MAG.
2002 PZ39	Aug. 6	23 LD	15
2002 NY40	Aug. 18	1.4 LD	9
2002 NV16	Aug. 22	15 LD	18
2002 PR1	Aug. 23	25 LD	17

Notes: LD is a "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.

• AURORA SURPRISE: An unexpected geomagnetic storm began on August 1st as night fell across North America. Sky watchers spotted vivid auroras over both the United States and Canada.
• CRESCENT SUN: The June 10th solar eclipse is long over, but new pictures of the event keep appearing. Visit our growing photo gallery and see for yourself. There are strange shadows, weird sunsets, eclipse dogs, crescent-eyed turkeys and extraordinary rings of fire. [more]
• COMET IKEYA-ZHANG: The brightest comet in years delighted sky watchers in March and April 2002. [gallery]
• GONE JUPITER: On Feb. 22, 2002, the Moon had a close encounter with Jupiter. [gallery]
• GONE SATURN: On Feb. 20, 2002, the Moon glided in front of Saturn and its mysterious rings. [gallery]
• HOT COMET: Periodic comet 96P/Machholz put on a dazzling show as it swung by the Sun on Jan. 8, 2002.
• ASTEROID FLYBY: Asteroid 2001 YB5 raced past Earth on Jan. 7, 2002, only two times farther away than the Moon. [gallery]
• SUBTLE ECLIPSE: The Moon dipped into the outskirts of Earth's shadow on Dec. 30, 2001. [gallery]
• MOON & SATURN: The Moon keeps getting in the way of Saturn! See the series of close encounters here.
• CHRISTMAS LIGHTS: On Christmas Eve, 2001, a solar wind stream triggered Northern Lights. [gallery]
• SOLAR ECLIPSE: Sky watchers in Hawaii and most parts of North America experienced a partial solar eclipse on Dec. 14th. [gallery]
• BRIGHT ASTEROID: Videos and images of 1998 WT24 -- a big and bright near-Earth asteroid that came close to our planet on Dec. 16, 2001. [gallery]
• NORTHERN LIGHTS: On Nov. 24th a pair of coronal mass ejections swept past Earth and triggered worldwide auroras.
• LEONIDS 2001: Some people saw it. Others heard it. In either case, they'll never forget it: The 2001 Leonid meteor storm.
• PERSEIDS 2001: Perseid watchers on August 12th spotted meteors, auroras, and a disintegrating Russian rocket! [gallery]
• MORNING PLANETS: In July and Aug. 2001, the Moon, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, and Mercury put on a dazzling early-morning sky show. [gallery]
• ECLIPSE SAFARI: Onlookers cried out in delight on June 21, 2001, when the Moon covered the African Sun, revealing the dazzling corona. [gallery]
• TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE: On Jan. 9, 2001, the full Moon glided through Earth's copper-colored shadow. [gallery]
• CHRISTMAS ECLIPSE: Sky watchers across North America enjoyed a partial solar eclipse on Christmas Day 2000 [gallery]
• LEONIDS 2000: Observers around the globe enjoyed three predicted episodes of shooting stars. [gallery]

NOAA Space Environment Center -- The official U.S. government bureau for real-time monitoring of solar and geophysical events, research in solar-terrestrial physics, and forecasting solar and geophysical disturbances.

Solar and Heliospheric Observatory -- Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO. (European Mirror Site)

Daily Sunspot Summaries -- from the NOAA Space Environment Center.

Current Solar Images --a gallery of up-to-date solar pictures from the National Solar Data Analysis Center at the Goddard Space Flight Center.

Recent Solar Events -- a nice summary of current solar conditions from lmsal.com.

SOHO Farside Images of the Sun from SWAN and MDI.

The Latest SOHO Coronagraph Images -- from the Naval Research Lab

The Sun from Earth -- daily images of our star from the Big Bear Solar Observatory

List of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids -- from the Harvard Minor Planet Center.

Observable Comets -- from the Harvard Minor Planet Center.

What is the Interplanetary Magnetic Field? -- A lucid answer from the University of Michigan. See also the Anatomy of Earth's Magnetosphere.

Real-time Solar Wind Data -- from NASA's ACE spacecraft.

More Real-time Solar Wind Data -- from the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory Proton Monitor.

Aurora Forecast --from the University of Alaska's Geophysical Institute

Daily Solar Flare and Sunspot Data -- from the NOAA Space Environment Center.

Lists of Coronal Mass Ejections -- from 1998 to 2001

What is an Iridium flare?

What is an Astronomical Unit, or AU?

NOAA Solar Flare and Sunspot Data: 1999; 2000; Jan-Mar, 2001; Apr-Jun., 2001; Jul-Sep., 2001; Oct-Dec., 2001; Jan-Mar., 2002;

Recent International Astronomical Union Circulars

Radio Meteor Rate
24 hr max: 29 per hr
Listen to the Meteor Radar!
Updated: 08 June 2002

Twisted magnetic fields near giant sunspot 69 erupted on Friday, Aug. 16th. The explosion sparked an M5-class solar flare and hurled a coronal mass ejection (pictured right) toward Earth.