| BEHOLD THE SUN:
Would you like to see fiery prominences and new-cycle sunspots
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COMET ENCOUNTER: A
near-Earth object due to pass our planet on Oct. 22 is not an asteroid,
but a comet: Comet
Barnard-Boattini was discovered in 1892, lost for more than
a century, and found again this month as it approached Earth. How
do you lose a comet? It's easy when the comet is as dim this one.
Bernard-Boattini will barely reach 16th magnitude even though it
is only 18 million miles away; it must be old and spent--or very
small. Observers, consider it a challenge: ephemeris.
NEW-CYCLE SUNSPOT:
A "new-cycle" sunspot belonging
to Solar Cycle 24 has emerged near the sun's northeastern limb.
Sunspot 1005 has two fast-growing dark cores wider than Earth and
a simple bipolar magnetic field that poses no threat for solar flares.
Alan Friedman sends this
picture from his backyard observatory in Buffalo, New York:
This is the third time in as many weeks that a new-cycle sunspot
has interrupted the year's remarkable run of blank
suns. The accelerating pace of new-cycle sunspot production
is an encouraging sign that, while solar activity remains very low,
the sunspot cycle is unfolding more or less normally. We are not
stuck in a permanent solar minimum. Readers with solar
telescopes should train them on the sun this weekend to observe
sunspot genesis in action.
more images: from
J. Fairfull and J. Stetson of South Portland, Maine; from
Greg Piepol of Rockville, Md; from
Pete Lawrence of Selsey, West Sussex; from
Tibor Horvath of Hegyhatsal, Hungary; from
Mike Borman of Evansville, Indiana; from
Peter Paice of Belfast, Northern Ireland; from
Sylvain Weiller of Saint Rémy lès Chevreuse, France; from
Jason Higley of Longwood, Florida;
MAGNETIC STORM:
A solar wind stream hit Earth on Oct. 11th, sparking the strongest
geomagnetic storm of 2008. The disturbance registered 7 on the 0-to-9
K-index scale of geomagnetic activity. Bright auroras spread across
Finland, where Sauli
Koski took this picture:
"Finally some good auroras and no clouds!"
he says. Bright moonlight added beauty to the scene by illuminating
the landscape. Koski made a
series of exposures using a Nikon
D3 digital camera, opening the shutter for 6 seconds at 800
ASA.
High-latitude sky watchers should remain alert
for auroras as the solar wind continues to blow.
UPDATED:
Oct. 2008 Aurora Gallery
[Previous Octobers: 2007,
2006, 2004,
2003, 2002,
2001,
2000]
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