Solar Flare (no spoilers)

[Rad]

I just want to mention something about solar flares. I haven't read the whole book yet (still on ch. 9, I think) but the solar flare thing is annoying. I heard of the real solar flare on some news station, then on this board, then on Smallville, then in WH, then on an old reading rainbow episode (that I rented from the library) called the bionic bunny show. It featured behind the scenes from star trek, the next generation, and the scene they were showing being filmed was where levar was mentioning a solar flare. I keep hearing about it everywhere, and it's annoying!

~Rad
I love Superchic[k]!
The Moosetrix Alaska
*Dai'Stiho*

[Selden]

Well, I'm sorry Rad, but they're real. The largest one in recorded history was just seen to go around to the far side of the sun. Hopefully it won't last the two weeks it'll take for the same region to get back around to this side!

Their causes really aren't understood, although they seem to happen most frequently about two years after the most recent peak in the 11 year solar sunspot cycle. Which means now.

The resulting aurora are beautiful, but the charged particles can do really nasty things to satellites and radio communications and to the power grid. I guess they're sort of like lightning storms: beautiful but deadly.

Pictures of the flares themselves are spectacular, too.

Selden

[Rysade]

[Birdhead]

Hehehehe. You sound like me in Science:
"No, it's not flagellums! Flagella! Jeez, people, don't you recognise a neuter noun when you see one and it's consequent plural nominative form?"

Class:"uh... NO."

Heh. I like showing off obscure knowledge you get in latin class, don't you?
T

"We are philosophical geniuses [sic] who will one day rule the world!"
--Agent M
Ahahahaha, Ahahahaha, Ahahahaha!

[Rysade]

[Birdhead]

*snort*
We have just been SPAMed!
Now, I could start talking about bases, and how they belong to us...
...but rather not, frankly. *goes in search of subject matter*
T

"We are philosophical geniuses [sic] who will one day rule the world!"
--Agent M
Ahahahaha, Ahahahaha, Ahahahaha!

[littlehorse82]

Lol about the grammar thing. My friend always says that you need a dictionary to talk to me. But I'm sure that could be true for just about everyone on this site.

If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?

Curiosity mauled the cat and left it on the side of the road.

School is hell with flourescent lighting.

[Selden]

Well, as long as we don't like what the sun's doing, I guess we won't like what happens to the moon tonight.

The total eclipse starts at 01:06 GMT, which is the same as 8:06PM U.S. Eastern Standard Time!

Here's what it'll look like about a half hour before that, when the mooon is only halfway into the Earth's umbra:


(This thumbnail links to a much larger picture. Looking at either of these pictures does not use any of DD's bandwidth. It does use yours, though.)

Selden

[This message was edited by Selden on 08 November 2003 at 7:40.]