GEOMAGNETIC STORMS ARE POSSIBLE TODAY: NOAA Forecasters Say That Minor G1-class Geomagnetic Storms
GEOMAGNETIC STORMS ARE POSSIBLE TODAY: NOAA forecasters say that minor G1-class geomagnetic storms are possible today, May 2nd, as a fast-moving stream of solar wind buffets Earth's magnetic field. There is a slight chance the storm could escalate to category G2. If so, auroras would be visible after nightfall in northern-tier US states. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text
A GIANT RING OF ELLERMAN BOMBS: Astronomers are monitoring a very large sunspot now turning toward Earth. Sunspot 4079 stretches more than 140,000 km from end to end and has two dark cores each large enough to swallow Earth. Moreover, it is surrounded by a ring of Ellerman Bombs:9
Philippe Tosi took this picture from his backyard observatory in Nîmes, France, and inserted an image of Earth for scale. "It is an impressive sunspot," he says.
Note the pinpoints of light ringing the two dark cores. These are Ellerman bombs: Magnetic explosions about one-millionth as powerful as a true solar flare. A handful are circled for reference. Named after physicist Ferdinand Ellerman who studied them in the early 20th century, a single Ellerman bomb releases about 1026 ergs of energy--equal to about 100,000 World War II atomic bombs.
Ellerman bombs are a sign of magnetic complexity in a sunspot. Opposite polarities bump together, reconnect, and--boom! A full-fledged flare may not be far behind.
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GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH (G2): Moderate (G2) geomagnetic storms are possible on April 22-23 when a co-rotating interaction region (CIR) is expected to hit Earth's magnetic field. CIRs are transition zones between fast- and slow-moving streams of solar wind; they contain enhanced magnetic fields akin to those of CMEs. Sky watchers across Canada and northern-tier US states from New York to Washington should be alert for auroras. Aurora alerts: SMS Text.
A LARGE HOLE IN THE SUN'S ATMOSPHERE: A large hole in the sun's atmosphere is facing Earth and spewing a stream of fast-moving solar wind directly toward our planet. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory photographed the opening, which stretches almost a million kilometers across the sun's southern hemisphere:
This is a "coronal hole"--a vast region in the sun's atmosphere where magnetic fields have opened up, allowing solar wind to escape. The hole looks dark because hot gas normally contained there is missing. It's on its way to Earth.
At the top of the page, we predicted a CIR (co-rotating interaction region) would hit Earth on on April 22nd. This giant hole is the driving force behind it. Fast solar wind flowing from the hole is compressing slower-moving solar wind in front of it, creating CME-like shock waves and magnetic fields that comprise the CIR.
G2-class geomagnetic storms are likely when the CIR reaches Earth.
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