Parallel Universe

The magnetic field that protects Earth from deadly cosmic radiation may be more vulnerable than previously thought.

A crack in the shield caused by a solar flare which exposed the planet to a bombardment of radiation has been detected.

Researchers from the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in India made the discovery when analyzing a galactic cosmic ray burst that caused radio blackouts across North and South America and a supercharged aurora borealis in 2015.

The cosmic ray source was a giant solar plasma cloud that traveled 40 hours from our sun to reach Earth, where the researchers believe it caused a transient “weakening of Earth’s magnetic shield”, according to their findings published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Earth’s magnetosphere extends over a radius of a million kilometers, which acts as the first line of defense, shielding us from the continuous flow of solar and galactic cosmic rays, thus protecting life on our planet from these high intensity energetic radiations.

Solar storms can cause major disruption to human civilization by crippling large electrical power grids, global positioning systems (GPS), satellite operations and communications.

May the 4th be with you on this intergalactic day! Here’s my first attempt at making a GIF.

Happy Star Wars Day

Fresh research has revealed that powerful solar storms known as "superflares" are generated via the same process as common solar flares produced by our Sun. These superflares are capable of posing a significant threat to our advanced technology, and seriously harming Earth's protective ozone layer.

Here is the image of a solar prominence captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory in 2012 (Credit: NASA/SDO/AIA/Goddard Space Flight Center)

Earth's atmosphere is bombarded by charged particles from the Sun on a constant basis. Periodically, our star throws off what is known as a solar flare. Most of the time the only visible effect of these solar storms are stunning aurora that manifest around Earth's higher latitudes. However, one event in mankind's recorded history highlighted the significance of the threat posed by powerful solar activity.

On Sept. 2, 1859, Earth's magnetic field was struck with the first particles cast out by a titanic solar storm that had exploded from our Sun the previous day. The interference caused by the event threw the worldwide telegraph network into disarray, and based on ice core samples retrieved from Greenland, caused significant damage to Earth's protective ozone layer. The powerful storm is now referred to as the Carrington Event.

Should such an eruption occur today, its ability to interfere with our electronics and power supplies would cause a far greater amount of damage owing to our complete reliance on technology in almost every facet of our lives. 

Solar flares are releases of magnetic energy from the sun's atmosphere. Sometimes — but not always — they bombard Earth with high-energy plasma. Superflares are the same principle, just bigger.

Researchers started cataloguing them with the Kepler space telescope a few years ago. They're easy to spot, even on distant stars, since they crank out about 10,000 times more energy than normal flares.

And in a new study published in Nature, researchers say the sun is capable of emitting a superflare of its own — even if that's unlikely.

Most superflares come from stars that are more magnetically active than our home star, but about 10 percent of the superflare examples researchers analyzed came from stars with similar or even weaker fields.

The closest thing we've ever seen to a superflare from the sun is probably the Carrington Event.

In 1859, the sun launched a flare so energetic it damaged Earth's ozone layer and set telegraph offices on fire.

Experts say a flare that powerful today could do billions of dollars in long-term damage to satellite networks and electrical transformers. Those aren't the sort of things we keep plenty of spares for.

And Carrington was a relatively weak example compared to the energies involved in superflares.

The good news, according to the researchers, is our solar activity records show these events only come along every millennium or so. What's more, we would probably see unprecedented sunspot activity beforehand, so at least we'd know it's coming.

FULL MOON WITH A LUNAR ECLIPSE TONIGHT! MARCH 22-23, 2016.

Right on the heels of the Spring Equinox where we honor new beginnings and birth, comes the full moon with the second eclipse to inspire and energize us with fullness and power. This is a good time to reflect on anything new that has come into your life; relationships, partnerships, good fortune, big choices, business, projects, health, healers, challenges of any kind, or any new environments.  What is it that they need at this time? How can you support them so they have the best possible chance of manifesting in a good way?

The full moon is always a time for gratitude and a time for seeing your life as full. If anything you are doing or experiencing feels less than full of what it needs, this is a good time to ask spirit for help. Whether it is love, support, health, stamina, energy, knowledge, direction, rest, inspiration, intimacy, excitement, trust or peace, ask and you shall receive.

We are also still in the influence of the Equinox. So if you have not yet spent any time in contemplation of new intentions, it is not too late. You may also be in the process of completing something to make room for that new seed you are planting. Remember also that this is a time of collaboration and community support, so always include how others can participate in your dreams.

Full Moon Blessings!

Observant people in North America and the Pacific will see a very, very subtle partial penumbral eclipse of the moon on the morning of March 23, 2016. The blazing planet Jupiter will be nearby. Western North America and Hawaii have the eclipse taking place in the nighttime sky from start to finish.

Other regions having all or part of the eclipse going on while the moon is above the horizon include much of Asia, Australia, New Zealand, much of South America, the Caribbean, Indian Ocean, the Arctic and Antarctica. If you live in Asia, Australia or New Zealand, the eclipse happens on the evening of March 23.

The moon will look plenty full as it lights up the eastern sky at nightfall March 22, but it’ll actually be a waxing gibbous moon. The moon turns precisely full on March 23 at 12:01Universal Time. At U.S. time zones, that translates to 8:01 a.m. EDT, 7:01 a.m. CDT, 6:01 a.m. MDT and 5:01 a.m. PDT.

If you’re on the nighttime side of the world when the moon turns full, you might notice the very faint penumbral shadow of the Earth falling on the southern portion of the moon’s disk, as illustrated below.

From all time zones in contiguous North America, you’ll want to look for the eclipse shortly before dawn breaks.

You may not detect any shadow on the moon, even if you’re viewing it at the moment of its deepest eclipse on March 23 at 11:47 Universal Time (4:47 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time).

That’s because a penumbral eclipse is a very subtle kind of eclipse.

Observant people will notice the shadow!

Others will stand looking at it and say they can’t see it at all.

This wonderful diagram is from Larry Koehn at shadowandsubstance.com. Go there to see what else is offered!