Sol (Sun) and its phenomena

[Puma]

According to Spaceweather.com, there was an M4.4 flare at 3:28 GMT, no precisions for its origin yet:

View attachment 82144

From AR3445

▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare M4.4 at 03:28 UTC from AR3445 it caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over Oceanía

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE ACTIVITY REPORT SEPTEMBER 25_2023

Solar activity has been at moderate levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a M4.4 event observed at 0328 UTC from Region 3445 (S14E05).

AR3443 (N28W67) produced a M1 solar flare at 15:00 it caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over Atlantic Ocean​

https://twitter.com/x/status/1705977532212727867

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706118604037538148

There are currently 11 sunspot regions on the solar disk:AR3433, AR3435, AR3438, AR3439, AR3440, AR3441, AR3442, AR3443, AR3444, AR3445, AR3446

AR3437 is gone

Total number of sunspots has decreased to 172 (72 of these are grouped into 11 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 65% chance for M flares and 15% chance for X flares.

AR3435 and AR3445 have a beta-delta magnetic field that poses a threat for X-class solar flares.

AR3443 has a beta-gamma magnetic field that harbors energy for M-class flares

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to major storm levels for the past 24 hours. On September 24 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 492 km/s (Elevated speed) at 20:00 UTC Total IMF reached 27 nT at 20:43 UTC
Active geomagnetic conditions (Kp4) threshold reached at 20:46 UTC Minor G1 geomagnetic storm (Kp5) threshold reached at 20:48 UTC Moderate G2 geomagnetic storm (Kp6) threshold reached at 20:52 UTC

STRONGER-THAN-EXPECTED CME IMPACT:​

As predicted, a CME hit Earth's magnetic field on Sept. 24th (2043 UT). The impact was much stronger than expected, deflecting magnetometer needles in Canada by as much as 129 nT. First contact with the CME produced a G2-class (Moderate) geomagnetic storm with intense red auroras over Scotland:​

​

"These were some of the reddest aurora I've ever seen," says photographer Chris Walker of the Mull of Galloway.

There is a chance this storm could escalate to category G3 (Strong) on Sept. 25th. High-latitude photographers (including those in northern-tier US states) should be alert for auroras tonight. SpaceWeather.com​

Aurora Oval Bz: 10.81 nT North


● Current Conditions at 04 10 UTC on September 25

▪︎ Minor G1 Geomagneticstorm (kp 5) threshold reached at 01:56 UTC
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 461 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 21.25 p/cm³ (Moderate density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 22.77 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 4.9 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C5 at 22:31 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 172 (SN 198 September 24)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT SEPTEMBER 26_2023

Solar activity has been at low levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a C9 event observed at 0813 UTC from Region 3445 (S14W09).

There are currently 11 sunspot regions on the solar disk:AR3435, AR3438, AR3439, AR3440, AR3441, AR3442, AR3443, AR3445, AR3446 and new regions AR3447, AR3448

AR3433 and AR3444 are gone

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706288275571265911

Total number of sunspots has decreased to 164 (65 of these are grouped into 11 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 40% chance for M flares and 15% chance for X flares.

● AR3435 has a beta-gamma-delta magnetic field that poses a threat for X-class solar flares.

● AR3443 has a beta-gamma magnetic field that harbors energy for M-class flares.

● AR3445 has a beta-delta magnetic field that harbors energy for X-class solar flares

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to minor storm levels for the past 24 hours. On September 25 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 508 km/s (Moderately high speed) at 04:45 UTC Minor G1 geomagnetic storm (Kp5) threshold reached at 05:50 UTC Total IMF reached 34 nT at 10:08 UTC

Aurora Oval Bz: -9.9 nT South

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706379576077676833

RARE RED AURORAS: As predicted, a CME hit Earth's magnetic field on Sept. 24th (2043 UT). The impact was much stronger than expected. Magnetometer needles in Canada jerked by as much as 129 nT, and a G2-class geomagnetic storm began almost immediately after the CME arrived. Observers in Europe saw rare red auroras as far south as France:​

​

"What a wonderful red aurora we had last night night in France!" says photographer Nicolas Drouhin of Burgundy. "It did not last long (about 5 minutes), but it was intense, even to the naked eye!"​

Naked-eye sightings of red auroras are unusual because human eyes are notoriously insensitive to the 6300 Å wavelength of their red light. Yet multiple observers in, e.g., Scotland and Iceland confirmed that they saw the scarlet glow. SpaceWeather.com​

● Current Conditions at 04 50 UTC on September 26

▪︎ Geospace unsettled (kp 3)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 434 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 4.28 p/cm³ (Moderate density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 12.31 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 4.5 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C5 at 04:28 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 164 (SN 172 September 25)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT SEPTEMBER 27_2023

Solar activity has been at low levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a C5 event observed at 04:28 UTC from Region 3445 (S13W23).

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706832461483667499

Show this tweet to your friend who supports Anthropogenic Climate Change.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706684221790532083

There are currently 10 sunspot regions on the solar disk:AR3435, AR3440, AR3441, AR3442, AR3443, AR3444, AR3445, AR3447, AR3448 and new region AR3449

AR3438, AR3439 & AR3446 are gone

Total number of sunspots has decreased to 179 (78 of these are grouped into 10 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 40% chance for M flares and 15% chance for X flares. Four sunspots have 'beta-gamma' and/or 'delta-class' magnetic fields that harbor energy for strong M-class solar flares:

● AR3435 has lost its gamma component and its magnetic field remains as beta-delta.

● AR3443, AR3445 & AR3449 have beta-gamma magnetic fields that harbor energy for M-class flares.

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to minor storm levels for the past 24 hours. On September 26 Minor G1 geomagnetic storm (Kp5) threshold reached at 08:09 UTC. Solar wind speed reached a peak of 582 km/s (Moderately high speed) at 17:36 UTC Total IMF reached 18 nT at 21:00 UTC

Aurora Oval Bz: 5.29 nT Norte


● Current Conditions at 04 40 UTC on September 27

▪︎ Geospace active (kp 4)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 472 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 9.55 p/cm³ (Moderate density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 6.16 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 5.9 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C2 at 22:30 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 179 (SN 164 September 25)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT SEPTEMBER 28_2023

Solar activity has been at low levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a C4 event observed at 0546 UTC​

There are currently 8 sunspot regions on the solar disk:AR3435, AR3440, AR3442, AR3445, AR3447, AR3448, AR3449 and new region AR3450

AR3441, AR3443 & AR3444 are gone

Total number of sunspots has decreased to 138 ( 58 of these are grouped into 8 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 35% chance for M flares and 10% chance for X flares.​

● AR3449 has a beta-gamma magnetic field that harbor energy for M-class flares.

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to active levels (Kp4) for the past 24 hours. On September 27 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 529 km/s (Moderately high speed) at 21:04 UTC Total IMF reached 6 nT at 04:56 UTC​

POSSIBLE GLANCING-BLOW CME: NOAA forecasters say there is a slight chance that a CME might graze Earth today. It left the sun on Sept. 25th traveling near the edge of the Earth-strike zone. A glancing blow, if it occurs, would cause at most a minor G1-class geomagnetic storm. SpaceWeather.com​

Aurora Oval Bz: 1.41 nT North

The G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm we reported yesterday produced beautiful auroras. The G1 disturbance continued through a good portion of the day, calming to active levels (Kp=4) at 2:55 UTC this morning. Meanwhile, although solar activity remains low today, we did see an erupting filament hurling ejecta into space from the vicinity of sunspot AR3447 in the southern hemisphere. Could this be the next event to disturb Earth’s magnetic field? Analysis is ongoing to determine if this blast is coming our way – we’ll let you know! EarthSky.org​

https://twitter.com/x/status/1706848172809900335

● Current Conditions at 04 20 UTC on September 28

▪︎ Geospace quiet (kp 2)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 401 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 0.16 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 5.66 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 5.4 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C5 at 00:19 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 138 (SN 179 September 25)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Olivierlejardinier]

From Spaceweather.com:

"

VAN GOGH WAVES IN THE MAGNETOSPHERE:

When Vincent van Gogh painted "The Starry Night" in 1889, little did he know he was working at the forefront of 21st century astrophysics. A paper recently published in Nature Communications reveals that the same kind of waves pictured in the famous painting can cause geomagnetic storms on Earth.​

Above: Vincent van Gogh's 'Starry Night', which he painted in 1889: more​

Physicists call them "Kelvin Helmholtz waves." They ripple into existence when streams of gas flow past each other at different velocities. Van Gogh saw them in high clouds outside the window of his asylum in Saint-Rémy, France. They also form in space where the solar wind flows around Earth's magnetic field.

"We have found Kelvin-Helmholtz waves rippling down the flanks of Earth's magnetosphere," says Shiva Kavosi of Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University, lead author of the Nature paper. "NASA spacecraft are surfing the waves, and directly measuring their properties."​

This was first suspected in the 1950s by theoreticians who made mathematical models of solar wind hitting Earth's magnetic field. However, until recently it was just an idea; there was no proof the waves existed. When Kavosi's team looked at data collected by NASA's THEMIS and MMS spacecraft since 2007, they saw clear evidence of Kelvin Helmholtz instabilities.

"The waves are huge," says Kavosi. "They are 2 to 6 Earth radii in wavelength and as much as 4 Earth radii in amplitude."​

This computer model shows van Gogh waves moving down the flank of Earth's magnetosphere. Credit: Shiva Kasovi. [full-sized animation]​

Imagine a wave taller than Earth curling over and breaking. That's exactly what happens. Kelvin-Helmholtz waves naturally break onto Earth's magnetic field, propelling energetic particles deep into the magnetosphere. This revs up Earth's radiation belts, triggering geomagnetic storms and auroras.

A key finding of Kavosi's paper is that the waves prefer equinoxes. They appear 3 times more frequently around the start of spring and fall than summer and winter. Researchers have long known that geomagnetic activity is highest around equinoxes. Kelvin-Helmholtz wave activity could be one reason why.

Our planet's seasonal dependence of geomagnetic activity has always been a bit of a puzzle. After all, the sun doesn't know when it's autumn on Earth. One idea holds that, around the time of the equinoxes, Earth's magnetic field links to the sun's because of the tilt of Earth's magnetic poles. This is called the Russell-McPherron effect after the researchers who first described it in 1973. Kavosi's research shows that Kelvin-Helmholtz waves might be important, too.

Northern autumn has just begun, which means Kelvin Helmholtz waves are rippling around our planet, stirring up "Starry Night" auroras. Happy autumn!"​

Abstract from the above mentionned paper:

"

Seasonal and diurnal variations of Kelvin-Helmholtz Instability at terrestrial magnetopause​

Kelvin-Helmholtz Instability (KHI) is ubiquitous at Earth’s magnetopause and plays an important role in plasma entry into the magnetosphere during northward interplanetary magnetic fields. Here, using one solar cycle of data from NASA THEMIS (Time History of Events and Macro scale Interactions during Substorms) and MMS (Magnetospheric Multiscale) missions, we found that KHI occurrence rates show seasonal and diurnal variations with the rate being high near the equinoxes and low near the solstices. The instability depends directly on the Earth’s dipole tilt angle. The tilt toward or away from the Sun explains most of the seasonal and diurnal variations, while the tilt in the plane perpendicular to the Earth‐Sun line explains the difference between the equinoxes. The results reveal the critical role of dipole tilt in modulating KHI across the magnetopause as a function of time, highlighting the importance of Sun-Earth geometry for solar wind-magnetosphere interaction and for space weather."

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT SEPTEMBER 29_2023

Solar activity has been at moderate levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a M1.3 event observed at 09:07 UTC from Region 3450 (S19E58) it caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over Southeast Africa​

Newcomer sunspot region AR3450 appeared yesterday over the sun’s southeast limb (edge) and now appears quite active. It was the producer of yesterday’s largest flare, despite not yet being labeled. And it produced an M1.3 flare over the past day, which kicked sun activity levels up to moderate. EarthSky.org​

https://twitter.com/x/status/1707574066259836950

There are currently 7 sunspot regions on the solar disk:AR3435, AR3440, AR3445, AR3447, AR3448, AR3449, AR3450

AR3442 is gone

Total number of sunspots has decreased to 109 ( 39 of these are grouped into 7 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 30% chance for M flares and 1% chance for X flares. All regions have stable magnetic fields.

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to unsettled levels (Kp3) for the past 24 hours. On September 28 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 479 km/s (Elevated speed) at 0135 UTC Total IMF reached 8 nT at 20:54 UTC

Aurora Oval Bz: -5.88 nT South


● Current Conditions at 03 50 UTC on September 29

▪︎ Geospace quiet (kp 2)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 429.4 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 4.04.16 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 8.08 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 5.4 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C1 at 00:14 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 109 (SN 138 September 28)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT SEPTEMBER 30_2023

ALL QUIET Solar activity has been at low levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a C7.5 event observed at 1824 UTC​

There are currently 7 sunspot regions on the solar disk:AR3435, AR3440, AR3445, AR3447, AR3448, AR3449, AR3450

Total number of sunspots has decreased to 102 ( 32 of these are grouped into 7 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 30% chance for M flares and 1% chance for X flares.

AR3450 has developed a beta-gamma magnetic field that harbors energy for M-class flares. The rest of the regions have stable fields​

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to active levels (Kp4) for the past 24 hours. On September 29 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 520 km/s (Elevated speed) at 09:45 UTC Total IMF reached 8 nT at 09:45 UTC​

QUIET WEEKEND: Last weekend, a CME hit Earth's magnetic field, sparking two days of geomagnetic storms and an outburst of rare red auroras. This weekend will be completely different. No CMEs are heading for Earth, and our planet's magnetic field should remain calm and quiet. SpaceWeather.com

Aurora Oval Bz: -4.38 nT South


● Current Conditions at 03 50 UTC on September 30

▪︎ Geospace quiet (kp 2)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 445 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 5.7.16 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 5.5 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 5.0 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C4 at 01:15 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 102 (SN 109 September 29)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Liliea]

A strange phenomenon occurred this Monday, September 25, in the sky of the Alpes-Maritimes, where some lucky people may have observed an aurora borealis.

The Sun, especially when it has a strong magnetic activity, expels gases in arcs of material that we see coming out, these are expelled to the Solar System and when they reach the Earth they are trapped by the radiation belts that surround it and that are in the North and South poles. This is when the northern lights are created.

But how can we explain that we see them here?
"When there's a lot of solar magnetic activity and a lot of trapped particles, the auroras are very bright, so they can be seen from further away. It's true that it's quite rare to see them on the side of the Alps", continues the astrophysicist.

Aurores boréales observées sur la Côte d'Azur: on décrypte ce phénomène rare

Si vos cours de sciences ne sont pas trop loin dans votre mémoire, vous vous souvenez sûrement que les aurores (boréales dans l'hémisphère Nord et australes au Sud) s'observent généralement lorsque l'on se rapproche des pôles. Comment expliquer alors qu'on en voit en France et même dans les Alpes

www.varmatin.com

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE ACTIVITY REPORT OCTOBER 01_2023

Solar activity has been at moderate levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a M1.2 event observed at 1635 UTC from Region 3451 (N14E60) It caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over South America

https://twitter.com/x/status/1708106562416369919

There are currently 7 sunspot regions on the solar disk: AR3440, AR3445, AR3447 AR3448, AR3449, AR3450 and new region AR3451

AR3435 is gone

Total number of sunspots has increased to 106 (36 of these are grouped into 7 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 45% chance for M flares and 5% chance for X flares.

AR3451 has a 'beta-delta' magnetic field that harbors energy for strong M-class solar flares. The rest of the regions have stable magnetic fields

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to unsettled levels (Kp3) for the past 24 hours. On September 30 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 532 km/s (Moderately high speed) at 10:31 UTC Total IMF reached 6 nT at 22:08 UTC

Aurora Oval Bz: -0.03 nT South

● Current Conditions at 04 50 UTC on October 01

▪︎ Geospace active (kp 4) threshold reached at 00:59 UTC
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 445 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 3.43 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 4.62 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 3.4 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare M2 5 at 01:32 UTC from AR3451 It caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over West Pacific Ocean

HOWEVER, THERE COULD BE SOME SOLAR FLARES: Solar flares are going off like popcorn in the magnetic canopy of new sunspot AR3451. The strongest so far is this staccato M2.5-class explosion recorded by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory during the early hours of Oct. 1st:​

​

The sunspot didn't even exist 24 hours ago. Since then it has grown more than a dozen dark cores, two of them wider than Earth. Magnetic maps of the sunspot are not fully definitive because it is facing away from Earth. However, the sunspot appears to have a mixed-polarity 'delta-class' magnetic configuration that harbors energy for -- you guessed it -- strong flares.

More explosions are in the offing SpaceWeather.com​

▪︎ Sunspot number: 106 (SN 102 September 30)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT OCTOBER 02_2023

Solar activity has been at moderate levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a M2.4 event observed at 0132 UTC on October 01 from Region 3452.

Originally the 3451 region was considered as the possible origin of the flare, however it has been established that both regions are very close and that the one that originated the M2.4 class flare was AR3452.​

X-ray Solar Flare M2 5 at 01:32 UTC from AR3451 It caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over West Pacific Ocean

There are currently 8 sunspot regions on the solar disk: AR3447 AR3448, AR3449, AR3450, AR3451, AR3452, AR3453, AR3454

AR3440 & AR3445 are gone

Total number of sunspots has increased to 136 (56 of these are grouped into 8 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 45% chance for M flares and 5% chance for X flares.

● AR3450 has a beta-gamma magnetic field that harbors energy for strong M-class solar flares.

● AR3451 has a beta-delta magnetic field that harbors energy for strong M-class solar flares.

THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE OF THE SUN IS IN CHARGE: For the second month in a row, sunspot counts in the sun's northern hemisphere are more than double the south. The assymetry is obvious in this summary of September's sunspots compiled by astronomer Senol Sanli using data from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory:​

​

According to the Royal Observatory of Belgium's Solar Influences Data Analysis Center, in September the monthly sunspot number for the sun's northern hemisphere was 90, the southern hemisphere was only 44. August was about the same.​

What's going on? In fact, it's not unusual for the sun's northern and southern hemispheres to be out of synch. As long ago as the 19th century, solar cycle pioneers Spoerer (1889) and Maunder (1890) noted that there were often long periods of time when most sunspots were found preferentially in one hemisphere and not the other. This plot from the Royal Observatory of Belgium shows assymetries throughout the last 6 solar cycles:​

Until recently, Solar Cycle 25 was pretty evenly matched, north vs. south. The sunspot counts of August and September, however, suggest that the northern hemisphere may be seizing control--at least temporarily. This has happened during the upslope of all four previous solar cycles (21-24).​

A simple explanation for this phenomenon may be that the two hemispheres of the sun have their own solar cycles, one out of phase with the other by about a year. An excellent discussion of sunspot asymmetries is included in David Hathaway's excellent review article "The Solar Cycle."​

SpaceWeather.com

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to active levels (Kp4) for the past 24 hours. On October 01 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 452 km/s (Elevated speed) at 20:31 UTC Total IMF reached 6 nT at:08:52 UTC

Aurora Oval Bz: -1 nT South

● Current Conditions at 04 50 UTC on October 02

▪︎ Geospace unsettled (kp 3)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 352 km/sec (Normal speed)
▪︎ density: 2.34 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 5.82 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 2.8 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C2 at 2311 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 136 (SN 106 October 01)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org

 

[Don Cesar]

A strange phenomenon occurred this Monday, September 25, in the sky of the Alpes-Maritimes, where some lucky people may have observed an aurora borealis.

The Sun, especially when it has a strong magnetic activity, expels gases in arcs of material that we see coming out, these are expelled to the Solar System and when they reach the Earth they are trapped by the radiation belts that surround it and that are in the North and South poles. This is when the northern lights are created.

But how can we explain that we see them here?
"When there's a lot of solar magnetic activity and a lot of trapped particles, the auroras are very bright, so they can be seen from further away. It's true that it's quite rare to see them on the side of the Alps", continues the astrophysicist.

Aurores boréales observées sur la Côte d'Azur: on décrypte ce phénomène rare

Si vos cours de sciences ne sont pas trop loin dans votre mémoire, vous vous souvenez sûrement que les aurores (boréales dans l'hémisphère Nord et australes au Sud) s'observent généralement lorsque l'on se rapproche des pôles. Comment expliquer alors qu'on en voit en France et même dans les Alpes

www.varmatin.com

I didn't pay attention and I didn't see them... Maybe @PERLOU?

 

[XPan]

Just for the sake of beautiful displays
Northern Lights • 18 Sep 2023, Tomsø - Norway

I kept these images on my computer for a while, to show them to you here later - because I thought they were really beautiful. Photographer Markus Varvik took them on 18 Sep 2023 in Tromsø, Norway and was published at Spaceweather.com

Spaceweather.com wrote that day:

CME IMPACT SPARKS GEOMAGNETIC STORM: Arriving a day earlier than expected, a CME hit Earth's magnetic field on Sept. 18th. The fast-moving CME triggered a G2-class geomagnetic storm on Sept. 18/19 with bright auroras around the Arctic Circle. Markus Varik witnessed a "massive powerful outburst" over Tromsø, Norway

And more recently

in the night of 24-25 Sep 2023, Sebastian-Sainio made these photos (but i don't recall where he made it). I do feel that he punched the colors a bit too far in the "DxO" photo software he used (And yet - it does look spectacular !)

We had auroras also over Stockholm that evening - albeit very faint, barely visible to the naked eye (they looked like white diffuse hazy clouds in a distance). Photos I saw from Estonia and other places at similar or even lower latitudes, showed really brilliant displays How strange...






Seen from my balcony in Southern Stockholm. The light streak is an airplane moving during through the sign of "Auriga", due to a longer exposure time.

 

[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT OCTOBER 03_2023

Solar activity has been at moderate levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a M1.8 event observed at 1246 UTC on October 02 from Region 3455 (N25E58) it caused a Minor R1 radio blackout over Atlantic Ocean

https://twitter.com/x/status/1708913143450071334

https://twitter.com/x/status/1708908111128371356

HUGE FILAMENT: A massive dark filament stretches across the entire solar disk from the NE limb down to the equator then westward nearly to the West limb (red outline). If this should become unstable and erupt we would be in for some very "interesting" space weather effects.
Keith Strong vía X​

There are currently 9 sunspot regions on the solar disk: AR3447 AR3448, AR3449, AR3450, AR3451, AR3452, AR3453, AR3454 and new region AR3455

WE'RE IN THE LINE OF FIRE: An unstable sunspot is directly facing Earth. AR3450 has a 'beta-gamma' magnetic field that harbors energy for M-class solar flares. NOAA says there's a 40% chance it will erupt today. If so, the explosion will be geoeffective
SpaceWeather.com​

https://twitter.com/x/status/1708919591441719530

Total number of sunspots has increased to 146 (56 of these are grouped into 9 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 40% chance for M flares and 5% chance for X flares.

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to unsettled levels (Kp3) for the past 24 hours. On October 02 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 488 km/s (Elevated speed) at 02:04 UTC Total IMF reached 6 nT at:09:12 UTC

Aurora Oval Bz: 1.62 nT North


● Current Conditions at 05 00 UTC on October 03

▪︎ Geospace quiet (kp 1)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 426 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 0.75 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 4.12 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 2.1 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C1 at 0401 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 146 (SN 136 October 02)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
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[Puma]

SOLAR CYCLE 25 ACTIVITY REPORT OCTOBER 04_2023

Solar activity has been at low levels for the past 24 hours. The largest solar event of the period was a C3 event observed at 0940 UTC on October 03 from Region 3450 (S19W10).

There are currently 9 sunspot regions on the solar disk: AR3448, AR3449, AR3450, AR3451 AR3452, AR3453, AR3454, AR3455 and new region AR3456

AR3447 is gone

Total number of sunspots has increased to 150 (60 of these are grouped into 9 active regions) NOAA forecasts for the next 24h: 99% chance for C flares, 40% chance for M flares and 5% chance for X flares.

● AR3450 has a beta-gamma magnetic field that harbors energy for M-class flares.

● Auroral Activity

The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to unsettled levels (Kp3) for the past 24 hours. On October 02 Solar wind speed reached a peak of 487 km/s (Elevated speed) at 19:47 UTC Total IMF reached 8 nT at: 19:48 UTC​

THREE CME IMPACTS IN SEPTEMBER: The sun has been buffeting Earth with CMEs. In September there were three significant strikes, each one sparking a geomagnetic storm with mid-latitude auroras. Another side-effect might surprise you. Each CME reduced cosmic radiation around our planet:​

​

This is called a "Forbush decreases," named after American physicist Scott Forbush who studied cosmic rays in the early 20th century. It happens when a coronal mass ejection (CME) sweeps past Earth and pushes galactic cosmic rays away from our planet. Radiation from deep space hitting Earth’s upper atmosphere is briefly wiped out.​

Normally, when cosmic rays hit the top of Earth's atmosphere, they produce a cascade of secondary particles that percolate down toward the ground. Using neutron counters, researchers in Oulu, Finland, have been monitoring these particles from space for almost 60 years. In the plot, above, we see how the three CMEs caused abrupt reductions in neutrons reaching the sensors in Finland.​

The example of Sept. 2023 explains, in part, why the intensity of galactic cosmic rays drops around Solar Max. The sun keeps sweeping them away from our planet, ironically making space safer for astronauts and satellites. SpaceWeather.com​

Aurora Oval Bz: 1.89 nT North

● Current Conditions at 04 40 UTC on October 04

▪︎ Geospace unsettled (kp 3)
▪︎ Solar wind speed record: 421 km/sec (Elevated speed)
▪︎ density: 1.39 p/cm³ (low density)
▪︎ Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF)
Bt: 9.3 nT
▪︎ Neutron Counts today: - 2 3 % (Low)
▪︎ X-ray Solar Flare C1 at 0401 UTC
▪︎ Sunspot number: 150 (SN 146 October 03)
▪︎ Spotless Days 2023 total: 0 days (0%)
▪︎ There are no significant equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun.
..
SpaceWeatherlive.com
SpaceWeather.com
EarthSky.org