What's Up? The Space Place

Hey, Space Placers!   30 + Events | 1 Million + Registrations | Join Us!   You're invited!  J oin NASA as a virtual guest for the launch of  Sentinel-6B ,an  international mission that will deliver critical sea level and ocean data to protect coastal infrastructure, improve weather forecasting, and support commercial activities at sea. Sentinel-6B is the second of twin satellites in the Copernicus Sentinel-6/Jason-CS (Continuity of Service) mission. The first,  Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich , launched in November 2020. The mission continues a decades-long effort to monitor global sea level and ocean conditions using precise radar measurements from space. For more information about these missions visit:  https://science.nasa.gov/ mission/sentinel-6b/ NASA is targeting launch at 12:21 a.m. EST Monday, Nov. 17 (9:21 p.m. PST, Sunday Nov. 16) aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Regist...

 Hey, Space Placers! Artist’s impression of the early universe. Credit: ESA/Hubble, M. Kornmesser. Here is an interesting news release  about the possible observation of Population III stars, or the very first stars to have formed in the Universe. The observations were made with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). One of the primary mission of JWST is to discover the very first stars and galaxies to have formed in our Universe. Sky Guy in VA

 Hey, Space Placers! As you can see from my iPhone pics on Tuesday night into the early hours of Wednesday morning skywatchers were treated to dazzling and colorful Aurora throughout North America. Our area got to see the sky show starting after 8 p.m. EST and lasting for hours as numerous pictures and comments were sent to WTOP  https://wtop.com/the-space-place/2025/11/northern-lights-sightings-possible-next-few-nights-in-dc-region/ ; as mentioned in the story we may get Aurora again Wednesday night into Thursday morning.  Fueling the sky spectacle was a powerful Level G4 (Severe) geomagnetic storm http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/noaa-scales-explanation that lasted for hours. Two videos from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC)  https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/ explained what was occurring at the onset https://www.facebook.com/reel/1364665611995916 and later https://www.facebook.com/reel/1565388894620064   . N...

 Hey, Space Placers! A very fast CME created by today's X5-flare. The snowy speckles in this SOHO coronagraph image are caused by high-energy protons accelerated by shock waves in the CME.  Credit: NASA vis Spaceweather.com Today is Veteran’s Day. My personal gratitude goes out to my fellow veterans who served our country and to those who serve today. To update happenings on our star since last week https://wtop.com/the-space-place/2025/11/look-up-northern-lights-sighting-possible-thursday-from-dc-region/ .  “ Sunspot 4274 erupted again this morning, producing its strongest (solar) flare yet ( This is the strongest solar flare for 2025 https://www.space.com/astronomy/sun/sun-unleashes-strongest-solar-flare-of-2025-sparking-radio-blackouts-across-africa-and-europe?utm_term=1A1238DB-D1A8-4DE2-8262-81672DE2FA7D&lrh=580ce74a54c8de843fea75d3b1d0cee5b2f8e39902059bf281901a850fac1944&utm_campaign=58E4DE65-C57F-4CD3-9A5A-609994E2C5A9&utm_medium=email&utm_content=4A...

 Hey, Space Placers! A worthy read..... Read the article here. Sky Guy in VA

 Hey, Space Placers! The amazing astrophotographers Michael Jäger, Gerald Rhemann and Enrico Prosperi have obtained the earliest image we've seen of 3I/ATLAS - the world's 3rd known interstellar object - as it emerges from its closest passage near our star, the sun, on October 29, 2025. They posted the image on Facebook,  on the page ICQ Comet Observations . There are a couple of other images there, in addition to the one above. Wonderful work! Thank you for this image, which shows that the object - a comet from another star system - has been affected, as comets often are, by its close passage near our sun. The object now displays multiple jets, streaming out in all directions. We're sure to see more images in the days ahead ... Stay tuned!  CREDIT: EARTHSKY.ORG  Here is an update on interstellar COMET (not spaceship) 3I/ATLAS.     Some media outlets have reported on the "speculation" that these jets could be thrusters for navigation. But the EVIDENCE shows...