Super-moon!

 This Saturday (May 5th), our familiar lunar companion will move in closer than she's been in twenty years, and will be in full phase, resulting in a "Supermoon" (or perigee-syzygy for you astronomy nerds). The perfect line-up will occur that night at 9:35pm, when the moon will appear larger than usual and cause many of us to transform into werewolves. Just kidding about that last part, although a supermoon is a suspect in the sinking of the Titanic, when unusually high tides may have dislodged the iceburg that struck the ship.

Lucky Iceland

Did you know we're in the middle of a geomagnetic storm, resulting from the strongest solar flare activity in five years? That would explain why my refrigerator magnets keep flying across the room. Sunspot AR1429 (I guess somebody keeps track), which is wider than the earth and facing us head-on, is spewing forth waves of solar energy, causing some glorious aurora activity in the north. Check out this shot from Faskrudsfjordur, Iceland (taken by Jónína Óskarsdótti):
































UPDATE: These auroras are now being reported from Wisonsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota. I could swear I remember seeing something similar in Utah years ago, which would be very unusual. Also, I was able to contact my dad through an old ham radio that night, except he was actually talking to me from 30 years in the past!
Anyway, geomagnetic storms have the potential to affect satellite navigation , GPS functioning,
and power grids (like an EMP), but so far the only result has been Northern Lights on steroids...













By Timo Newton-Sims, Finland

















By Timo Veijalainen, Finland
















By Chad Blakley, Sweden

Speaking of significant celestial events, guess where the best place on earth to view the next solar eclipse is? Kanarraville, Utah! Also home to the nations' first all-woman fire department, this tiny town will see an influx of 'astro-tourists' seeking a front row seat to watch the moon almost completely cover the sun on May 20th. Click HERE for the story (featuring an interview with Bonnie Oldroyd)
















Aurora info source: SpaceWeather.com