Aurora Alert! 9/14-9/15 (Big Class X flare today heading our way)

AURORA ALERT! A coronal mass ejection (CME) is racing toward Earth and it could spark a severe geomagnetic storm when it arrives--perhaps tonight (Sept. 14th and 15th). People everywhere should be alert for auroras.



The CME, pictured above, was hurled into space on Sept. 13th by an X1-class explosion at sunspot 798. This remarkable 'spot has produced nine X-flares since Sept. 7th including a record-setting X17-monster. All by itself, sunspot 798 has made Sept. 2005 the most active month on the sun since March 1991.

During the Sept 13th explosion, Thomas Ashcraft of New Mexico heard a strong radio burst on his 22 MHz receiver: listen. The slowly undulating signal is a Type II solar radio burst, generated by a shock wave at the leading edge of the CME.

If this incoming CME does hit Earth's magnetic field as hard as forecasters expect, auroras could appear in places where they are seldom seen: California, Arizona, Texas and elsewhere. Stay tuned for updates.