Invisible portals let sun’s wind blow through Earth’s hair

The sun giveth in so many ways. A high speed wind of particles from a large hole in its outer atmosphere is streaming toward Earth right now and will put the squeeze on our planet’s protective magnetic bubble wrap tomorrow June … Continue reading →

A coronal hole shows up as huge dark patch in this photo taken this morning in ultraviolet light by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory. Holes are places where the sun’s magnetic field opens up and allows pent up solar wind to escape. Electrons and protons in the wind can cook up auroras in Earth’s upper atmosphere. Credit: NASA
The sun giveth in so many ways. A high speed wind of particles from a large hole in its outer atmosphere is streaming toward Earth right now and will put the squeeze on our planet’s protective magnetic bubble wrap tomorrow June 30 and Sunday.
Flaring sunspot groups currently crossing the sun will also contribute to the disturbance.
That puts at least minor auroral storms back in the forecast, so be on the lookout. One downer. A bright moon could dilute their visibility.
A NASA-funded researcher has been studying a recently discovered phenomenon called “portals” that connect the sun’s ...