SOLAR WATCH * Huge X8.2 Flare Sept. 10, 2017! (Updated Daily)

That's a very beautiful timelapse. Thanks for sharing it with us

It was pretty amazing.

Pesky humidity, fog and clouds are starting to roll in and make it difficult to observe at the moment.

Good to know mine has been the same. Not good to know sorry to hear that but I'm glad to know why. My ears are going nuts and have been since last night. I'm hoping for a KP 8 to 9 that way I can see some auroras in Northern Missouri

Here's my warmest of wishes for you to get some beautiful auroras

M-flare and climbing

[link to www.swpc.noaa.gov (secure)]

I think it's another X...

Nope.

Last Edited by WyatteSmith on 03/23/2024 07:58 PM

Maxed at M2.4 but maybe it will turn and climb again.

https://imgur.com/RY01aHS

[link to www.solarham.net (secure)]

We are drowning in pesky fog sadly :( No lightshow for us at the moment.

What's the flux rope and sheath again?

Oh man, I thought there were boobies in this thread - but then I realized I got here "a bit" late.

Sea of disappointments.

The flares are great, but would have been better with boobies.

More info at the link:
[link to www.swpc.noaa.gov (secure)]

Coronal Mass Ejections (CME) Space Weather Phenomena
published: Monday, September 25, 2017 21:15 UTC

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are huge explosions of magnetic field and plasma from the Sun's corona. When CMEs impact the Earth’s magnetosphere, they are responsible for geomagnetic storms and enhanced aurora. CMEs originate from highly twisted magnetic field structures, or “flux ropes”, on the Sun, often visualized by their associated “filaments” or “prominences”, which are relatively cool plasmas trapped in the flux ropes in the corona. When these flux ropes erupt from active regions on the Sun (regions associated with sunspots and very strong magnetic fields), they are often accompanied by large solar flares; eruptions from quiet regions of the Sun, such as the “polar crown” filament eruptions, sometimes do not have accompanying flares.

CMEs travel outward from the Sun typically at speeds of about 300 kilometers per second, but can be as slow as 100 kilometers per second or faster than 3000 kilometers per second. The fastest CMEs erupt from large sunspot active regions, powered by the strongest magnetic field concentrations on the Sun. These fast CMEs can reach Earth in as little as 14--17 hours. Slower CMEs, typically the quiet region filament eruptions, take several days to traverse the distance from the sun to Earth. Because CMEs have an embedded magnetic field that is stronger than the background field of the solar wind, they will expand in size as they propagate outward from the Sun. By the time they reach the Earth, they can be so large they will fill half the volume of space between the Sun and the Earth. Because of their immense size, slower CMEs can take as long as 24 to 36 hours to pass over the Earth, once the leading edge has arrived.

CMEs that are traveling faster than the solar wind plasma’s fast mode wave speed (the space equivalent of the Earth’s sound speed) will generate a shock wave, just like an airplane traveling faster than the speed of sound generates a sonic boom. These shock waves accelerate charged particles ahead of them to create much of the solar radiation storm affiliated with large-scale solar eruptions. Often, the first sign of a CME hitting the Earth environment is the plasma density jump due to the shock wave’s passage.

more at the link

Last Edited by joinca on 03/23/2024 08:22 PM

So.... we get an unpredicted G2 Storm from some unknown transient. So NOAA SWPC is really clueless about spaceweather prediction. I swear they dusted off the old dart board to make their latest forecasts. The SW density topped 60 earlier today, yet they only predict 30 for the big incoming X-flare CME!?! WTF?

I don't see anything wild in the solar winds, so this is probably attributable to the Equinox Effect alone. We could see a G5+ severe storm when the real energy gets here in a few hours.

Also, the Coronal Hole stream is anticipated on the 25th as well as the Full Moon. The Moon will be squarely inside Earth's magnetotail when the CME arrives tomorrow. These are wild cards to consider.

GFZ Potsdam Kp Index:

[link to isdc.gfz-potsdam.de (secure)]

Realtime Solar Winds:

[link to www.swpc.noaa.gov (secure)]

Space Weather Message Code: ALTK06
Serial Number: 549
Issue Time: 2024 Mar 23 2322 UTC

ALERT: Geomagnetic K-index of 6
Threshold Reached: 2024 Mar 23 2320 UTC
Synoptic Period: 2100-2400 UTC

Active Warning: Yes
NOAA Scale: G2 - Moderate

NOAA Space Weather Scale descriptions can be found at
www.swpc.noaa.gov/noaa-scales-explanation

Potential Impacts: Area of impact primarily poleward of 55 degrees Geomagnetic Latitude.
Induced Currents - Power grid fluctuations can occur. High-latitude power systems may experience voltage alarms.
Spacecraft - Satellite orientation irregularities may occur; increased drag on low Earth-orbit satellites is possible.
Radio - HF (high frequency) radio propagation can fade at higher latitudes.
Aurora - Aurora may be seen as low as New York to Wisconsin to Washington state.



Last Edited by Helios Maximus on 03/23/2024 11:04 PM

Many thanks!

M2.71 flare from 3615 still in progress....

Solar Demon movie:

[link to www.sidc.be (secure)]

Long filament is still attached to AR3614 even after the X-flare.

GONG photo:

[link to gong2.nso.edu (secure)]

Yeah that prediction for the density and the level of 30 coming in seems way off. I believe that they are very poor at darts. I believe I'll keep following your info

The Pentagram's DARPA and weapons developer Northrup-Grumann are planning to build a RAILROAD ON THE MOON!


Northrup Grumman is Studying How to Build a Railway on the Moon

NASA will deploy the elements of the Lunar Gateway, the Artemis Base Camp, and other infrastructure that will allow for a “sustained program of lunar exploration and development.” They will be joined by the European Space Agency (ESA), the China National Space Agency (CNSA), and Roscosmos (Russia), the latter two collaborating to build the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS).

{Wait, I thought China & Russia were our mortal enemies. }

“For 65 years, DARPA has pioneered and de-risked technologies vital to civil space advancement — from the rocket technology in the Saturn V that took humans to the Moon for the first time, to the recent DARPA-NASA partnership to enable faster space travel to the Moon and beyond with a nuclear thermal rocket engine.

“LunA-10 continues this rich legacy by identifying and accelerating key technologies that may be used by government and the commercial space industry, and ultimately to catalyze economic vibrancy on the Moon. Just like DARPA’s foundational node of ARPANET grew into the sprawling web of the internet, LunA-10 is looking for those connective nodes to support a thriving commercial economy on the Moon.”

Full report here:
[link to www.universetoday.com (secure)]

More here:
[link to news.northropgrumman.com (secure)]

What the heck is so important on the barren moon???