So much for all the tinfoil websites out there claiming that Mars' moons had disappeared and that NASA and the Goobermint were *GASP* COVERING IT UP!
Oh, yeah, I forgot: no one but the Goobermint and NASA owns a telescope or a camera. There aren't thousands of skywatchers out on any given night, some with pretty impressive setups, looking at and imaging everything they can. Nah. Can't be that easy. Must be my imagination that amateurs find comets, asteroids, novae; they couldn't possibly see Mars' moons which were first seen by Asaph Hall in 1877.
</SARCASTIC RANT>
From Solar Terrestrial Dispatch:
Latest Geomagnetic and Auroral Activity Conditions
Updated: 04:00 UTC 24 October (12:00 am [midnight] EDT, 24 October):
Within the next 12 hours, a major geomagnetic and auroral storm is predicted to commence. Auroral activity could become visible into the middle latitude regions. Storm activity is expected to continue for the next 3 days due to persisting coronal mass ejections from intense solar activity.
Much more significant activity will be possible over the coming 10 days if the existing intense active regions continue to produce energetic solar activity.
Solar Activity Update
INTENSE solar activity is continuing in-progress. Another major solar flare (class M7.6 event) occurred at 02:53 UTC on 24 October (10:53 pm EDT on 23 October) from Region 486. Additional major flare activity is expected.
M5 flare below:
Here, see lots of solar movies both MPEG and GIF format. Too bad that tonight's immense flare is not yet shown. Still these are DRAMATIC views of our very active home star.
The very latest still images are available HERE AT SOHO.
Like this one, caught as the Sun spewed out another flare at 12:28 AM Eastern Daylight Time:
