| WAKE UP!
Did you sleep through the auroras of October? Next time get
a wake-up call: Spaceweather
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MIDNIGHT FIREBALLS:
Earth is passing through a swarm of gritty
debris from comet 2P/Encke and this is causing a slow flurry of
Taurid fireballs.
Be alert for these very bright meteors anytime after nightfall.
You may have to stay outside an hour or more to see one, but one
is enough to make the wait worthwhile: gallery.
AURORA WATCH: A
solar wind stream is buffeting Earth's magnetic field and causing
geomagnetic disturbances around the Arctic Circle. Photographer
Rune Christiansen sends this self-portrait from Nuuk, Greenland:
"I made this 20-second exposure using my Canon
5D set at ISO 1000," says Christiansen. "It was great
to have clear skies for a change while the auroras were active."
If good weather holds, he might see more tonight. The solar wind
continues to blow and high-latitude sky watchers should remain alert
for auroras.
Nov.
2008 Aurora Gallery
[Previous Novembers: 2007,
2006, 2004,
2003, 2001,
2000]
SUNSET-FLAVORED JELLO:
"Every time I go to watch a Pacific
sunset I feel like I'm going out on my very first date," says
Mila
Zinkova of San Francisco, California. "Tonight (Nov. 6th)
my date was oh-so entertaining. A green rim and green flashes danced
on the top and the sides of the sun for almost a minute as it descended
into the Pacific. The green color was as deep as the ocean itself."
She captured the scene in a series of photos:
"It reminds me of jello," says atmospheric optics expert
Les Cowley. "Near the horizon the sun always sports a slender
green rim. Our
sphere-shaped atmosphere acts as a lens to lift
the sun’s image. The blue and green 'suns' are lifted more than
the red one, but we rarely see the blue rim because blue light is
mostly scattered away to form the sky color above us. The mirage
conditions here have distorted the sun and vertically magnified
the green rim to generate mini green flashes."
"The California Coast with its cold ocean currents overlaid
by warm winds from the land is ideal for seeing sights like these."
Sunset jello: another reason to go to the beach!
UPDATED: 2008
Taurid Fireball Gallery
[2005 Taurids: on
Earth, on
the Moon]
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