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SPACE WEATHER
NOAA Forecasts |
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Updated at: 2026 Mar 26 2200 UTC
FLARE |
0-24
hr |
24-48
hr |
CLASS M |
40
% |
40
% |
CLASS X |
05
% |
05
% |
Geomagnetic Storms:
Probabilities for significant
disturbances in Earth's magnetic field are given for three activity levels: active, minor
storm, severe
storm
Updated at: 2026 Mar 26 2200 UTC
Mid-latitudes
|
0-24
hr |
24-48
hr |
ACTIVE |
20
% |
10
% |
MINOR |
05
% |
01
% |
SEVERE |
01
% |
01
% |
High latitudes
|
0-24
hr |
24-48
hr |
ACTIVE |
15
% |
15
% |
MINOR |
25
% |
20
% |
SEVERE |
25
% |
20
% |
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This is an AI Free Zone: Text created by Large Language Models is spreading across the Internet. It's well-written, but frequently inaccurate. If you find a mistake on Spaceweather.com, rest assured it was made by a real human being.
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TEN SUNSPOT GROUPS: Suddenly, the solar disk is peppered with sunspots. Including three new dark cores emerging over the eastern limb, there are at least 10 sunspot groups on the Earthside of the sun. This naturally increases the odds of geoeffective flares. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text
HAPPY 30TH, COMET HYAKUTAKE: One of the biggest surprises in modern astronomy happened 30 years ago. On Jan. 30, 1996, Japanese amateur astronomer Yuji Hyakutake spotted a faint fuzzball through binoculars. Within weeks, "Comet Hyakutake" became a worldwide sensation as it passed just 0.1 AU from Earth.
Alan Dyer was one of many who photographed it on March 25, 1996--the night of closest approach:
"I reprocessed this image in 2026 to mark the 30th anniversary," says Dyer. "The comet's tail was at its greatest length and showed a strong 'disconnection event' caused by solar activity."
Hyakutake’s electric-blue ion tail stretched across as much as 90 degrees of sky, rippling with solar wind disturbances. For many observers, it was the first time a comet looked truly alive and dynamic. Nightly changes were visible to ordinary people simply looking up from their own backyards.
Comet Hyakutake arrived without much warning, peaked quickly, and faded almost as fast. Thirty years later, veterans still speak of it in reverent tones.
The next Great Comet could appear with as little warning. The Oort cloud contains an enormous reservoir of fresh comets, and a steady trickle of them enters the inner solar system each year. It only takes one big one to turn a faint fuzzball into a sky-spanning spectacle.
Happy 30th, Comet Hyakutake!
more images: from Doug C. Zubenel of Carroll County, Missouri
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
A FAR-OUT GIFT FOR MOM: Mother's Day is coming. Are you looking for a far-out gift? Here it is. This butterfly floated to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon on Jan. 15, 2026:
You can have it for $91.95. The acrylic butterfly is a love note: "To my beautiful Mom, never forget that I love you," the inscription says. It's a durable tribute to any loving mom.
Do you love science? Shop the Earth to Sky Store. Every item in the store has been to the edge of space, floating above 99.7% of Earth's atmosphere, experiencing cosmic rays, extreme cold, and a wild ride parachuting back to Earth. All sales support student research and STEM education.
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery
Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter
Every night, a network
of NASA
all-sky cameras scans the skies above the United
States for meteoritic fireballs. Automated software
maintained by NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office
calculates their orbits, velocity, penetration depth
in Earth's atmosphere and many other characteristics.
Daily results are presented here on Spaceweather.com.
On March 26, 2026, the network reported 8 fireballs.
(8 sporadics)
In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue).
[Larger image] [movies]
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 March 27, 2026 there were 2349 potentially hazardous asteroids.
 |
Recent
& Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
| Asteroid |
Date(UT) |
Miss Distance |
Velocity (km/s) |
Diameter (m) |
| 2026 FV2 |
2026-Mar-21 |
4.5 LD |
3.8 |
8 |
| 2026 FE5 |
2026-Mar-21 |
8.4 LD |
14.6 |
46 |
| 2026 FA5 |
2026-Mar-21 |
10.7 LD |
9.5 |
14 |
| 2026 FO3 |
2026-Mar-21 |
0.9 LD |
5.6 |
3 |
| 2026 FK2 |
2026-Mar-21 |
5 LD |
14.2 |
13 |
| 2026 FW2 |
2026-Mar-21 |
0.6 LD |
16.2 |
5 |
| 2026 FD5 |
2026-Mar-21 |
8 LD |
11.2 |
16 |
| 2026 FN2 |
2026-Mar-21 |
4.3 LD |
12.2 |
16 |
| 2026 FD1 |
2026-Mar-21 |
2.7 LD |
4.5 |
7 |
| 2026 FS |
2026-Mar-21 |
2.1 LD |
15.4 |
28 |
| 2026 FJ3 |
2026-Mar-21 |
10.3 LD |
14 |
18 |
| 2026 FY2 |
2026-Mar-21 |
10.3 LD |
10.4 |
24 |
| 2010 RA91 |
2026-Mar-22 |
4.7 LD |
9.9 |
68 |
| 2026 FH3 |
2026-Mar-22 |
10.3 LD |
14.1 |
21 |
| 2026 ER3 |
2026-Mar-22 |
18.3 LD |
10.2 |
27 |
| 2026 EE3 |
2026-Mar-22 |
10.2 LD |
10.2 |
22 |
| 2026 FS5 |
2026-Mar-22 |
0.1 LD |
10.8 |
2 |
| 2026 FU |
2026-Mar-22 |
1.5 LD |
4.4 |
10 |
| 2026 FZ4 |
2026-Mar-22 |
1.2 LD |
13.8 |
3 |
| 2026 FK |
2026-Mar-22 |
6.9 LD |
15.4 |
16 |
| 2026 FU3 |
2026-Mar-23 |
3.1 LD |
10.1 |
10 |
| 2026 FQ1 |
2026-Mar-23 |
17.8 LD |
5.5 |
15 |
| 2026 FC5 |
2026-Mar-23 |
4.8 LD |
16.4 |
21 |
| 2026 FL3 |
2026-Mar-23 |
4.6 LD |
4.4 |
9 |
| 2026 FO4 |
2026-Mar-23 |
9.6 LD |
12.3 |
17 |
| 2022 FY |
2026-Mar-23 |
10.2 LD |
6.5 |
9 |
| 2026 FQ5 |
2026-Mar-24 |
2.3 LD |
10.6 |
11 |
| 2026 FQ2 |
2026-Mar-24 |
6.3 LD |
10.4 |
12 |
| 2026 FX3 |
2026-Mar-24 |
3 LD |
9.7 |
22 |
| 2026 FG3 |
2026-Mar-24 |
8.1 LD |
21.6 |
29 |
| 2026 FT2 |
2026-Mar-24 |
4.1 LD |
8.2 |
16 |
| 2026 FN5 |
2026-Mar-24 |
1 LD |
11.9 |
16 |
| 2026 FM3 |
2026-Mar-25 |
0.6 LD |
5.4 |
5 |
| 2026 EP3 |
2026-Mar-25 |
8.2 LD |
8.2 |
23 |
| 2026 FG4 |
2026-Mar-25 |
4.7 LD |
10.9 |
7 |
| 2025 SP20 |
2026-Mar-25 |
18.8 LD |
11 |
12 |
| 2026 FB5 |
2026-Mar-25 |
1.3 LD |
10.3 |
7 |
| 2026 FB3 |
2026-Mar-26 |
7.4 LD |
13.1 |
17 |
| 2026 FB4 |
2026-Mar-26 |
1.7 LD |
10.4 |
9 |
| 2026 FA3 |
2026-Mar-27 |
7.5 LD |
13.8 |
17 |
| 2026 FR2 |
2026-Mar-28 |
18.1 LD |
11.6 |
26 |
| 2026 FX5 |
2026-Mar-28 |
7.7 LD |
12.2 |
15 |
| 2026 FL4 |
2026-Mar-28 |
4.9 LD |
19.3 |
14 |
| 2026 FU2 |
2026-Mar-28 |
2.4 LD |
13.2 |
11 |
| 2026 FF6 |
2026-Mar-29 |
7.7 LD |
19.8 |
34 |
| 2026 FN1 |
2026-Mar-30 |
8.5 LD |
9.9 |
18 |
| 2026 FA4 |
2026-Mar-30 |
16.3 LD |
11.6 |
21 |
| 2026 FV3 |
2026-Mar-31 |
10.9 LD |
11.1 |
23 |
| 2026 FJ |
2026-Mar-31 |
7.7 LD |
2.2 |
11 |
| 2026 FV5 |
2026-Apr-01 |
11.7 LD |
5.6 |
12 |
| 2026 FD4 |
2026-Apr-02 |
8 LD |
6 |
10 |
| 2026 FR4 |
2026-Apr-02 |
14 LD |
6.8 |
12 |
| 2025 GL |
2026-Apr-03 |
9.8 LD |
6.4 |
5 |
| 2019 FQ1 |
2026-Apr-03 |
9.6 LD |
10.1 |
13 |
| 2023 DZ2 |
2026-Apr-04 |
2.6 LD |
7.2 |
49 |
| 2026 FG5 |
2026-Apr-04 |
8.6 LD |
25 |
34 |
| 2026 FB6 |
2026-Apr-04 |
12.6 LD |
6.8 |
9 |
| 2021 GN6 |
2026-Apr-06 |
5.8 LD |
7 |
14 |
| 2011 FT9 |
2026-Apr-07 |
3.4 LD |
5.9 |
20 |
| 2024 TB7 |
2026-Apr-07 |
4.9 LD |
7.5 |
5 |
| 2002 TB70 |
2026-Apr-07 |
13.4 LD |
9.2 |
164 |
| 2022 GE2 |
2026-Apr-10 |
12 LD |
9.2 |
15 |
| 2023 HB4 |
2026-Apr-12 |
16.8 LD |
8.7 |
15 |
| 2013 GM3 |
2026-Apr-14 |
0.7 LD |
7.4 |
20 |
| 2026 AC4 |
2026-Apr-20 |
10.7 LD |
1.2 |
22 |
| 2022 UG2 |
2026-Apr-20 |
16.3 LD |
10.3 |
13 |
| 2025 HQ4 |
2026-Apr-21 |
16.4 LD |
12.5 |
22 |
| 2026 BK2 |
2026-Apr-22 |
10 LD |
8.1 |
219 |
| 2022 UU8 |
2026-Apr-25 |
8.7 LD |
4 |
9 |
| 2020 GE3 |
2026-May-09 |
11.1 LD |
6 |
21 |
| 2023 VR5 |
2026-May-16 |
7.5 LD |
2.3 |
10 |
| 2025 KR4 |
2026-May-18 |
15.2 LD |
5.9 |
22 |
| 2023 KH4 |
2026-May-24 |
5.5 LD |
7.9 |
14 |
| 2023 KZ1 |
2026-May-24 |
9 LD |
13.4 |
20 |
Notes: LD means
"Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance
between Earth and the Moon. 1 LD also equals 0.00256
AU.
| |
Cosmic Rays in the Atmosphere |
SPACE WEATHER BALLOON DATA: Almost once a week, Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus fly space weather balloons to the stratosphere over California. These balloons are equipped with sensors that detect secondary cosmic rays, a form of radiation from space that can penetrate all the way down to Earth's surface. Our monitoring program has been underway without interruption for 10 years, resulting in a unique dataset of in situ atmospheric measurements.
Latest results (Nov. 2024): Atmospheric radiation is sharply decreasing in 2024. Our latest measurements in November registered a 10-year low:
What's going on? Ironically, the radiation drop is caused by increasing solar activity. Solar Cycle 25 has roared to life faster than forecasters expected. The sun's strengthening and increasingly tangled magnetic field repels cosmic rays from deep space. In addition, solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) sweep aside cosmic rays, causing sharp reductions called "Forbush Decreases." The two effects blend together to bring daily radiation levels down.
.Who cares? Cosmic rays are a surprisingly "down to Earth" form of space weather. They can alter the chemistry of the atmosphere, trigger lightning, and penetrate commercial airplanes. According to a study from the Harvard T.H. Chan school of public health, crews of aircraft have higher rates of cancer than the general population. The researchers listed cosmic rays, irregular sleep habits, and chemical contaminants as leading risk factors. A number of controversial studies (#1, #2, #3, #4) go even further, linking cosmic rays with cardiac arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death.
Technical notes: The radiation sensors onboard our helium balloons detect X-rays and gamma-rays in the energy range 10 keV to 20 MeV. These energies span the range of medical X-ray machines and airport security scanners.
Data points in the graph labeled "Stratospheric Radiation" correspond to the peak of the Regener-Pfotzer maximum, which lies about 67,000 feet above central California. When cosmic rays crash into Earth's atmosphere, they produce a spray of secondary particles that is most intense at the entrance to the stratosphere. Physicists Eric Regener and Georg Pfotzer discovered the maximum using balloons in the 1930s and it is what we are measuring today.
| |
The
official U.S. government space weather bureau |
| |
The
first place to look for information about sundogs,
pillars, rainbows and related phenomena. |
| |
Researchers
call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO
is the most advanced solar observatory ever. |
| |
3D
views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial
Relations Observatory |
| |
Realtime
and archival images of the Sun from SOHO. |
| |
information about sunspots based on the latest NOAA/USAF Active Region Summary |
| |
current counts of failed and deployed Starlink satellites from Jonathan's Space Page. See also, all satellite statistics. |
| |
Authoritative predictions of space junk and satellite re-entries |
| |
from
the NOAA Space Environment Center |
| |
fun to read, but should be taken with a grain of salt! Forecasts looking ahead more than a few days are often wrong. |
| |
from the NOAA Space Environment Center |
| |
the
underlying science of space weather |
 |
Got a chipped or cracked windshield that prevents you from seeing space weather events while driving? Get windshield replacement from SR Windows & Glass with free mobile auto glass service anywhere in the Phoenix area. |
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These links help Spaceweather.com stay online. Thank you to our supporters! |
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©2021 Spaceweather.com. All rights reserved. This site is penned daily by Dr. Tony Phillips. |
