Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2025 September 15
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                     Earth During a Powerful Solar Storm
      Video Credit: [2]NASA's [3]SVS, [4]SWRC, [5]CCMC, [6]SWMF; [7]T.
                             Bridgeman [8]et al.

   Explanation: Can our Sun become dangerous? Yes, sometimes. Every few
   years our [9]Sun ejects a scary-large [10]bubble of hot gas into the
   [11]Solar System. Every hundred years or so, when the timing, location,
   and [12]magnetic field connections are just right, such a Coronal Mass
   Ejection (CME) will hit the [13]Earth. When this happens, the [14]Earth
   not only experiences dramatic auroras, but its magnetic field gets
   quickly pushed back and [15]compressed, which causes electric grids to
   surge. Some of these surges could be dangerous, [16]affecting
   satellites and [17]knocking out power grids -- which can take months to
   fix. Just such a storm -- called the [18]Carrington Event -- occurred
   in [19]1859 and caused [20]telegraph wires to spark. A similar [21]CME
   passed near the Earth in 2012, and the [22]featured animated video
   shows a computer model of what might have happened if it had been a
   direct hit. In this model, the Earth's [23]magnetopause becomes so
   compressed that it went inside the orbit of [24]geosynchronous
   communication satellites.

                    Tomorrow's picture: stellar cathedral
     __________________________________________________________________

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    Authors & editors: [36]Robert Nemiroff ([37]MTU) & [38]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([39]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Amber Straughn [40]Specific rights apply.
            [41]NASA Web Privacy, [42]Accessibility, [43]Notices;
                A service of: [44]ASD at [45]NASA / [46]GSFC,
                         [47]NASA Science Activation
                           & [48]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://www.nasa.gov/
   3. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/
   4. https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/heliophysics/spaceweather
   5. https://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov/
   6. https://clasp.engin.umich.edu/research/theory-computational-methods/space-weather-modeling-framework/
   7. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/search/?people=Tom Bridgman
   8. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4189/
   9. https://science.nasa.gov/sun/
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap180902.html
  11. https://eyes.nasa.gov/apps/solar-system/
  12. https://www.nasa.gov/science-research/heliophysics/nasa-understanding-the-magnetic-sun/
  13. https://science.nasa.gov/earth/facts/
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap220809.html
  15. https://i.pinimg.com/236x/68/39/3f/68393f3ed2ce3ab1aa221497496fb290.jpg
  16. https://www.space.com/may-solar-storm-largest-mass-migration-satellites
  17. https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/images/u33/finalBoulderPresentation042611 (1).pdf
  18. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event
  19. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1859#Events
  20. https://www.history.com/articles/a-perfect-solar-superstorm-the-1859-carrington-event
  21. https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/nmp/st5/SCIENCE/cme.html
  22. https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4189/
  23. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetopause
  24. https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/first-geosynchronous-satellite/
  25. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250914.html
  26. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  27. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  29. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  30. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  31. https://apod.com/feed.rss
  32. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  33. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  34. https://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=250915
  35. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap250916.html
  36. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  37. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  38. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  39. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  40. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  41. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  42. https://www.nasa.gov/general/accessibility/
  43. https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
  44. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  45. https://www.nasa.gov/
  46. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  47. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  48. http://www.mtu.edu/