GET READY FOR MORE FLARES: A new and potentially very active sunspot group emerged today. It announced itself with an X1-class solar flare, which caused a strong shortwave radio blackout over the Atlantic Ocean and Europe. More flares may be in the offing as the sunspot turns toward Earth. Developing story @ Spaceweather.com.
Above: The extreme ultraviolet flash from today’s X-class solar flare. Credit: NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory
INTENSIFYING SOLAR ACTIVITY: The sun unleashed another X-class solar flare today, causing a deep shortwave radio blackout over southeast Asia and Australia. Intensifying solar activity has resulted in more than 19 flares during the past 24 hours alone. Even farside sunspots are getting in on the act. Full story @ Spaceweather.com.
Don’t miss another solar flare: Subscribers to our Space Weather Alert Service received a text message about today’s X-flare while it was happening. Above: An X2.2-class solar flare on April 20, 2022. Credit: NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory
NAKED-EYE SUNSPOTS: Yesterday in Poland, a flock of cranes flew across the setting sun. Among them were sunspots. “Active sunspot complex AR2993-94 is so big that it was easily visible to the naked eye,” says Marek Nikodem, who photographed the flyby:
It’s true. The primary dark cores of AR2993-94 are twice as wide as Earth. Technically, this makes them “naked-eye” objects. Be careful, though. Looking at the sun can damage your eyes. Safe solar filters are strongly recommended.
Earth itself provided the filter for Nikodem’s photo. Low-hanging clouds and haze dimmed the sun enough for photography. Just to be on the safe side, though, he pointed his camera using the electronic viewscreen–not the optical viewfinder.
EARTH-DIRECTED CME: A dead sunspot exploded today. The corpse of AR2987, which decayed days ago, erupted, and the debris is heading straight for Earth. A CME expected to arrive on April 14th could spark moderately-strong G2-class geomagnetic storms. Full story @ Spaceweather.com.
CME Alerts: Subscribers to our Space Weather Alert Service receive instant text messages when significant CMEs hit Earth’s magnetic field. Above: Old sunspot AR2987 erupting on April 11, 2022. Credit: NASA/SDO
Telescopes then and now. We have been watching the stars for centuries and our tools have changed dramatically since the time of Ptolemy and early astronomers. This panel will explore how tools and practices have changed over time.
Sajjad Nikfahm-Khubravan will trace the history of tools and ideas down from Greek astronomers to Islamic observers, and from the golden age of Islamic astronomy to European observers. Dallas Wulf will balance this historical tour with a talk on the powerful tools used by astronomers today. Join ROAAr and the McGill Space Institute for this special collaborative panel, and get a peek at some of the history of astronomy treasures in the McGill Library’s rare and special collections with librarian Lauren Williams.
X-CLASS SOLAR FLARE: Earth-orbiting satellites have just detected a powerful explosion on the sun. The X1.3-class flare on March 30th (1737 UT) caused a shortwave radio blackout over the Americas and has almost certainly hurled a CME toward Earth. Follow this developing story @ Spaceweather.com.
Don’t miss another solar flare: Subscribers to our Space Weather Alert Service received a text message about this X-flare while it was happening. Such prompt notifications allow ham radio operators, amateur astronomers and others to react to flares before they fade away. Above: The extreme ultraviolet flash from today’s X-flare. Credit: NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory
A ‘CANNIBAL CME’ IS APPROACHING EARTH: A strong G3-class geomagnetic storm is possible later this week when a ‘Cannibal CME’ hits Earth’s magnetic field. It’s a ‘cannibal’ because it ate one of its own kind en route to our planet. The mash-up of two CMEs could spark naked-eye auroras visible from northern-tier US states. Full story @ Spaceweather.com.
Aurora Alerts: Sign up for Space Weather Alerts and get instant text notifications when geomagnetic storms are underway. Above: This frame from a NASA animation shows one CME overtaking another. The resulting merger is called a ‘Cannibal CME.’
SOLAR FLARE, TSUNAMI, AND RADIATION STORM: A strong flare on the sun this morning kicked off a remarkable sequence of events: a solar tsunami, a solar radio burst, a solar proton storm, a terrestrial radio blackout and a polar cap absorption event. The explosion also (almost certainly) hurled a CME toward Earth. Developing story @ Spaceweather.com.
Solar Flare Alerts: Sign up for Space Weather Alerts and get instant text notifications when solar flares are underway. Above: An M4-class solar flare and shortwave radio blackout (inset) on March 28, 2022.
GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH (G1-CLASS): Yesterday, the sun launched a coronal mass ejection (CME) toward Earth. Forecasters are divided on when it might arrive–sometime between midday on March 27th and early March 28th. The impact could spark minor G1-class geomagnetic storms with equinox auroras boosted by the “Russell-McPherron effect.” Full story @ Spaceweather.com.
Solar Flare Alerts: Sign up for Space Weather Alerts and get instant text notifications when solar flares are underway. Above: Equinox auroras over Norway on March 20, 2022. Photo credit: Sirpa Pursiainen. For the latest sightings, check out Spaceweather.com’s real time Aurora Photo Gallery.
Image source, NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI Image caption, The test star has the ungainly name 2MASS J17554042+6551277. A red filter optimises the visual contrast
The American space agency has achieved a major milestone in its preparation of the new James Webb Space Telescope.
Engineers say they have now managed to fully focus the $10bn observatory on a test star. The pin-sharp performance is even better than hoped, they add.
If we made contact with aliens, how would religions react?
The discovery of life on another planet might seem incompatible with faith in a deity. Yet many theologians are already open to the existence of extraterrestrials, argues the writer Brandon Ambrosino.
In 2014, NASA awarded $1.1M to the Center for Theological Inquiry, an ecumenical research institute in New Jersey, to study “the societal implications of astrobiology”.
Some were enraged. The Freedom From Religion Foundation, which promotes the division between Church and state, asked NASA to revoke the grant, and threatened to sue if NASA didn’t comply. While the FFR stated that their concern was the commingling of government and religious organisations, they also made it clear that they thought the grant was a waste of money. “Science should not concern itself with how its progress will impact faith-based beliefs.”
The FFR’s argument might well be undermined, however, when the day comes that humanity has to respond to the discovery of aliens. Such a discovery would raise a series of questions that would exceed the bounds of science. For example, when we ask, “What is life?” are we asking a scientific question or a theological one? Questions about life’s origins and its future are complicated, and must be explored holistically, across disciplines. And that includes the way we respond to the discovery of aliens. READ MORE
Watch NASA roll mega Artemis I moon rocket out to the launchpad
The NASA Artemis I stack, including the SLS rocket (right) topped with the Orion spacecraft, leaves the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 17
(CNN)The Artemis I mission is another step closer to its lunar launch.
The massive 322-foot-tall (98 meters) stack, which includes NASA’s Space Launch System rocket topped by the Orion spacecraft, rolled out for its testing debut at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday.
The integrated stack, which sits on a mobile launcher, began its slow-moving crawl into launch position Thursday afternoon, with live coverage available on NASA’s website. The rollout officially began at 5:47 p.m. ET.
The rocket stack is seen inside the building before emerging on the crawler.
The 4-mile (6.4-kilometer) ride aboard one of the Apollo-era giant NASA crawlers from the assembly building to the launchpad could take up to 11 hours, according to NASA. The estimated arrival at the pad is around 4:30 a.m. ET on Friday.
CME SPARKS GEOMAGNETIC STORM: As predicted, a CME hit Earth’s magnetic field today, March 13th, sparking a moderately-strong G2-class geomagnetic storm. Depending on conditions in the CME’s wake, the storm could spill into March 14th. If it does, sky watchers in northern-tier US states might be able to see auroras after local nightfall. Stay tuned to Spaceweather.com for updates.
Aurora Alerts: Sign up for Space Weather Alerts and get instant text notifications when geomagnetic storms are underway. Above: First contact with the CME ignited bright auroras over Nome, Alaska. Photo credit: John Dean. Monitor the aurora photo gallery for more sightings.
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