Everyone should keep their eyes on the stars as a string of incredible solar phenomena is possible starting from Monday night in the first week of August.
A highly rare G3 geomagnetic storm is forecast within the next 24 hours, and depending on its strength, could bring the aurora borealis to the US through Tuesday and Wednesday nights. according to A giant chunk of material from the sun, a so-called “man-eating coronal mass ejection (CME),” is heading toward Earth, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center, but it may not be as magical as the G5 storm observed in May, Forbes reports. I got it..
The three-day forecast shows the strongest storms are expected on Tuesday, with G2 conditions on Monday and Wednesday, ranked A (moderate) to G1 (mild).
WENDOVER, Utah – May 10, 2024: A geomagnetic storm lit up the night sky over the Bonneville Salt Flats in Wendover, Utah on May 10, 2024. The powerful geomagnetic storm reached Earth and was expected to cause the aurora borealis (also known as the Northern Lights) to be visible as far south as Alabama and parts of northern California. (Photo by Blake Benard/Getty Images)
The third most powerful solar flare ever observed at X-ray wavelengths occurred early on the morning of October 28, 2003, at approximately 6:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, from sunspot 486. Prior to the flare, a coronal mass ejection (CME) nearly struck the Earth, sending electrically charged gases toward the planet, according to scientists from NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). The flare sent X-rays toward the Earth at the speed of light. According to NOAA's Space Environment Center (SEC), the X-rays caused a radio storm in the ionosphere during the morning and early afternoon of October 28, 2003. The CME would not reach Earth until approximately noon on Wednesday, October 29, 2003. (Photo by NASA/WireImage) *** Local Caption ***
LONE PINE, California – MAY 12: The rare phenomenon of the Aurora Borealis, with its pink hue, appears over Owens Valley on May 12, 2024, as seen from near Alabama Hills outside Lone Pine, California. It's the second night since an intense solar storm made the Aurora Borealis visible all the way to Southern California. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)
In addition to this super cool solar spectacular, two meteor showers are scheduled to peak during the week of July 29th. according to To the American Meteor Society (AMS). (Related: If you thought the solar eclipse was cool, get ready for what's coming next)
The Southern Delta Aquarids and Alpha Capricornids meteor showers are expected to peak at roughly the same time between Monday night and early Tuesday morning. As many as 25 meteors per hour may be visible, CNN reports. I got it..
BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK, TX – MARCH 15: The Milky Way appears in the night sky at the U.S.-Mexico border on March 15, 2024, in Big Bend National Park, Texas. Located in the Chihuahuan Desert of West Texas, the park boasts the largest, most remote and darkest sky in the continental United States, making it easy to see the stars on a clear night. The park, which attracts approximately 370,000 visitors annually, is often considered one of the most beautiful places on the border between the Southwestern United States and Mexico. The border between the two countries stretches for nearly 2,000 miles from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean, and is separated by fences, deserts, mountains and the Rio Grande River, which runs the entire length of Texas. Politics and controversy surrounding the border and immigration issues have been major themes in the U.S. presidential election campaign. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
TOPSHOT – A long exposure photo taken in the early hours of August 28, 2022, shows the Milky Way galaxy unfolding above an abandoned van in the town of Bchaleh in Lebanon's mountainous region north of the capital, Beirut. (Photo: Ibrahim Chalhoub/AFP) (Photo: Ibrahim Chalhoub/AFP via Getty Images)
The Alpha Capricornids meteor shower is known for hurling giant fireballs into the sky at a somewhat slow rate of about five per hour. I had one pass over our house in early July and it was quite possibly one of the coolest things I've ever seen in the sky. (RELATED: Incredible video shows aurora next to 'lightning-filled supercell')
I truly believe that humanity would be much happier if we could see the stars at night. Most towns, cities, and even villages in the developed world only shine with a handful of our celestial neighbors. Surely, if we could see more of what is going on above, we would feel a greater sense of wonder and realize just how small we (and most of our ideas) really are.
