Picture Credit: NASA, ESA, NOAA
Things are getting interesting in the neighbourhood. That stream of particles coming from our sun is reaching the vicinity of Earth. Adding to this, the Sun belched out a huge mass of material from the bright area in the lower left. Although it's headed more or less off to the side, some of this massive flare material will undoubtedly make it our way. Already, satellites are being put into "safe mode" to avoid unwanted electrical surges. Power companies are reconfiguring the power grids here on Earth to avoid blackouts. The Goes-13 picture you see here was the last unaffected by the high velocity solar particles streaming our way. The satellite was unable to process a stable image after this one and the number one culprit is our Sun. If we have clear skies over the next two or three evenings we have a good chance of having an appearance of the Northern Lights too. Unfortunately the Moon is just past full so it's unlikely we'll be able to see the show.
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