Monthly Archives: November 2013

The Sun Online and solar activity. November 30, 2013

NOAA AR 1907 produced the only C-flare of yesterday November 30. We forecast a probability for C-flares slightly above 50%. A partial halo CME was detected by CACTus. The CME appeared in the field of view of SOHO/LASCO C2 around 19:00, November 29. There was no clear on disk signature of the eruption. We can assume that the CME is back sided.The solar wind speed increased to 350 km/s. The total interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) shows also an increase since yesterday. The solar wind
structure passing near the L1 point can be possibly linked to the northern coronal hole that passed the central meridian on November 24. The plasma pressure although was not strong enough to cause a geomagnetic disturbance. Similar for the z-component of the IMF which was not strongly negative. The
planetary Kp stayed below 4. We expect quiet geomagnetic conditions with K lower than 4.

INFO FROM SIDC
Equipment: Coronado 90 + SBIG 8300s + LX75
Processing: Photoshop
Date: 11/30/13
Time UT: 14:30
Exposure 0.8 sec.

With SPONLI Space is getting closer!

Surprising Comet ISON

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, SOHO – Video Editing: Babak Tafreshi (TWAN)

After failing to appear for Sun staring spacecraft at perihelion, its harrowing closest approach to the Sun, sungrazing Comet ISON was presumed lost. But ISON surprised observers yesterday as material still traveling along the comet’s trajectory became visible and even developed an extensive fan-shaped dust tail. Edited and processed to HD format, this video (vimeo, youtube) is composed of frames from the SOHO spacecraft’s coronographs. It follows the comet in view of the wide (blue tint) and narrow (red tint) field cameras in the hours both before and after perihelion passage. In both fields, overwhelming sunlight is blocked by a central occulting disk. A white circle indicates the Sun’s positon and scale. With questions to be answered and the tantalizing possibility that a small cometary nucleus has survived in whole or part, surprising comet ISON will be rising before dawn in planet Earth’s skies in the coming days.

Evolution of the space food

Food evaluations are conducted approximately eight to nine months before the flight. During the food evaluation sessions, the astronaut is given the opportunity to sample a variety of foods and beverages available for flight. A pack of information is given to each astronaut to use in planning their personal preference menus. Included in the packet is a standard menu, training menu, past flight menus the astronaut has chosen, and the baseline shuttle food and beverage list.

Exhibition of the history of space food, organized by agency NASA.

The Sun Online and solar activity. November 29, 2013

NOAA AR 1907 and 1908 were responsible for the C-flaring activity today November 29 and yesterday, November 28. We expect more C-flares. NOAA AR 1909 is also in the running for C-flaring activity.
Solar wind speed is below 300 km/s. The slow wind carries an average total interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) below 10nT. The earth entered another sector causing unsettled geomagnetic conditions on the planetary level (Kp=3). Further we expect quiet geomagnetic conditions for the rest of the UT day. Tomorrow, November 30, a glancing blow of the filament eruption of November 27 is possible.

INFO FROM SIDC
Equipment: Coronado 90 + SBIG 8300s + LX75
Processing: Photoshop
Date: 11/29/13
Time UT: 14:30
Exposure 0.8 sec.

With SPONLI Space is getting closer!

Comet ISON Before and After

Image Credit: NASA, SOHO

Sungrazing Comet ISON reached perihelion, its closest approach to the Sun, yesterday, November 28, at 18:45 UT. The comet passed just over 1 million kilometers above the solar surface, a distance less than the diameter of the Sun. These two panels follow ISON before (right) and after its close approach, imaged by the LASCO instrument onboard the Sun staring SOHO spacecraft. Overwhelming sunlight is blocked by LASCO’s central occulting disk with a white circle indicating the Sun’s positon and scale. The bright comet is seen along its path at the bottom of the before panel, but something much fainter exits near the top of the after panel, potentially a dust tail reforming from the debris left from ISON’s perihelion passage.

The Sun Online and solar activity. November 28, 2013

Two C-class flare sin past 24h. NOAA AR 1906 produced a C1.4 flare peaking at 00:41 UT, the other one was seen from behind the west limb. More C-class flares can be expected. A partial halo CME was seen by LASCO-C2 at 15:13 UT on November 27, related to a filament eruption in the northern hemisphere. This eruption is mostly directed to the north, but a glancing blow to the Earth is possible. The calculated speed is 540 km/s, giving a probable arrival on November 30 around 17:00 UT. Solar wind speed is very low (260 km/s) with magnetic field around 5nT.
Geomagnetic conditions have been quiet and are expected to remain so.

INFO FROM SIDC
Equipment: Coronado 90 + SBIG 8300s + LX75
Processing: Photoshop
Date: 28/11/13
Time GMT: 18:00
Exposure 0.12 sec.
With SPONLI Space is getting closer!

Earth from the ISS

NASA / Astronaut Ron Garan The International Space Station (ISS) is a space station, or a habitable artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ninth space station to be inhabited by crews, it follows the Soviet and later Russian Salyut, Almaz, and Mir stations, and Skylab from the U.S. The ISS is a modular structure whose first component was launched in 1998. Now the largest artificial body in orbit, it can often be seen at the appropriate time with the naked eye from Earth. The ISS consists of pressurised modules, external trusses, solar arrays and other components. ISS components have been launched by American Space Shuttles as well as Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets. Budget constraints led to the merger of three space station projects with the Japanese Kibō module and Canadian robotics. In 1993 the partially built components for a Soviet/Russian space station Mir-2, the proposed American Freedom, and the proposed European Columbus merged into a single multinational programme. The ISS is arguably the most expensive single item ever constructed. The ISS serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which crew members conduct experiments in biology,human biology, physics, astronomy, meteorology and other fields. The station is suited for the testing of spacecraft systems and equipment required for missions to the Moon and Mars.

NGC 1999: South of Orion

Image Data: Subaru Telescope (NAOJ), Hubble Space Telescope,
Additional Color Data and Processing: Robert Gendler

Explanation: South of the large star-forming region known as the Orion Nebula, lies bright blue reflection nebula NGC 1999. At the edge of the Orion molecular cloud complex some 1,500 light-years distant, NGC 1999’s illumination is provided by the embedded variable star V380 Orionis. That nebula is marked with a dark sideways T-shape near center in this cosmic vista that spans about 10 light-years. The dark shape was once assumed to be an obscuring dust cloud seen in silhouette against the bright reflection nebula. But recent infrared images indicate the shape is likely a hole blown through the nebula itself by energetic young stars. In fact, this region abounds with energetic young stars producing jets and outflows with luminous shock waves. Cataloged as Herbig-Haro (HH) objects, named for astronomers George Herbig and Guillermo Haro, the shocks look like red gashes in this scene that includes HH1 and HH2 just below NGC 1999. The stellar jets push through the surrounding material at speeds of hundreds of kilometers per second.

NASA APOD

The Sun Online and solar activity. November 27, 2013

Solar activity has been low, no C-class flares in past 24 hours. The activity levels are expected to increase while a recurring active region rotates over the eastern limb. There was a partial halo CME seen at 02:15 UT by LASCO-C2 after a data gap, apparently originating in a filament eruption over the western limb. Part of the material is backsided and the bulk of the CME is directed towards the south, so most likely the Earth
will not be affected.Solar wind speed is currently at 300 km/s with interplanetary magnetic field intensity at 6 nT. Geomagnetic conditions are quiet and expected to remain so.

INFO FROM SIDC
Equipment: Coronado 90 + SBIG 8300s + LX75
Processing: Photoshop
Date: 27/11/13
Time GMT: 19:00
Exposure 0.12 sec.
With SPONLI Space is getting closer!

EARTH from ISS

Pictures from board the ISS (The International Space Station), habitable artificial satellite in low Earth orbit.
Autor: André Kuipers, a Dutch physician and ESA astronaut.

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