Loss of Contact with STEREO Behind “Communications with the STEREO Behind spacecraft were interrupted on October 1, 2014 immediately after a planned reset of the spacecraft performed as part of a test of solar conjunction operations. There have been no successful communications since then, though attempts to recover the spacecraft continue. Here we explain the events that led up to the loss in communications, and the activities that have been […]

Comet ISON May or May Not Still Exist “Comet ISON went around the sun on Nov. 28, 2013. Several solar observatories watched the comet throughout this closest approach to the sun, known as perihelion. While the fate of the comet is not yet established, it is likely that it did not survive the trip.” – Comet ISON Streams Toward the Sun (video) – Hyper Suprime-Cam Captures Comet ISON’s Long Tails, […]

New NASA Telescope Offers a First Glimpse of the Sun’s Mysterious Atmosphere [Watch], NASA “NASA’s Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) spacecraft has captured its first observations of a region of the sun that is now possible to observe in detail: the lowest layers of the sun’s atmosphere. The first images from IRIS show the solar interface region in unprecedented detail. They reveal dynamic magnetic structures and flows of material in […]

Space Station Changes its Position for Solar Science, NASA “The sun lightens our world and enlightens our scientists as they look to our closest star for a better understanding of solar activity and what it means for our planet. Unique data from solar studies help researchers build on their knowledge of the Earth’s atmosphere and climate change. June 30 marked the second time the International Space Station literally went out […]

The Highest Resolution Image of the Sun’s Surface Ever Obtained in Visible Light “The 1.6-meter aperture New Solar Telescope (NST) at Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO), has captured the highest resolution image of the surface of the sun ever obtained in visible light. The image was acquired with adaptive optics.”

NOAA SEC Space Weather Bulletin #11- 1: Geomagnetic Storm Expected “NOAA Region 1261, very active over the past few days, produced the third of a sequence of Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) and Solar Radio Blackout Events early today. The net effect of that activity is convergent CMEs expected to disturb the geomagnetic field in the early hours, Universal Time (UTC) of August 5. G3 (Strong) Geomagnetic Storm conditions are likely […]

NASA Tamps Down Massive Solar Flare Impact Hype, PC World “While some of the coverage of the massive Valentine’s Day solar flare made it sound like the world was coming to an end, or darn close to it. NASA’s website this afternoon played another likely more realistic tune: “The particle cloud produced by the Valentine’s Day event appears to be rather weak and is not expected to produce any strong […]

Videos: Large Solar Flare and CME As Seen by the Solar Dynamics Observatory “This clip of the large X2 flare (Feb. 15, 2011) seen by Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) in extreme ultraviolet light has been enlarged and superimposed on SOHO’s C2 coronagraph for the same period. This was the largest flare in over four years. The coronagraph shows the faint edge of a “halo” coronal mass ejection (CME) as it […]

Joint USAF/NOAA Report of Solar and Geophysical Activity 1 August 2010 “Region 1092 (N13E21) produced a long-duration C3/Sf flare at 01/0826Z. The flare was associated with a Type IV radio sweep, an 890 sfu Tenflare, and an Earth-directed full-halo coronal mass ejection (CME). A disappearing filament (DSF) occurred during 01/0750 – 0811Z, centered near N37W32 and time coincident with the C3 flare. The DSF was associated with an Earth-directed partial-halo […]