Mike Bettwy, a government meteorologist who focuses on potential threats from space weather, says that we are more prepared than ever — and that forecasting is only getting better.
Mike Bettwy, the operations chief for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center. “The sun is definitely entering its more active phase,” he said.
The Chang’e-6 mission’s sample, which might hold clues about the origins of the moon and Earth, is the latest achievement of China’s lunar exploration program.
Penny Sackett, former director of the Australian National University’s Mount Stromlo Observatory, just outside Canberra, in the remains of the observatory, which was destroyed in a 2003 wildfire.
Electrical utilities said they weathered earlier conditions as persistent geomagnetic storms were expected to cause another light show in evening skies.
A NASA satellite recorded the sun releasing a powerful solar flare on Friday night. Elevated solar activity this week has contributed to powerful geomagnetic storms in Earth’s atmosphere.
Officials warned of potential blackouts or interference with navigation and communication systems this weekend, as well as auroras as far south as Southern California or Texas.