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NASA’s MERRA-2 climate model reveals that the Arctic stratosphere has reached a 40-year record low for December, creating a sudden appearance of polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) far beyond their usual Arctic confines. Recent observations have revealed a remarkable surge in polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs), often referred to as the most beautiful clouds on Earth due to their aurora-like colors. This sudden increase is attributed to a 40-year record low in temperatures within the Arctic stratosphere for the month of December, as indicated by NASA’s MERRA-2 climate model. PSCs form under extremely cold conditions, typically around -85 °C (-121 °F), in...

A startup claims it has launched weather balloons that may have released reflective sulfur particles in the stratosphere, potentially crossing a controversial barrier in the field of solar geoengineering.Geoengineering refers to deliberate efforts to manipulate the climate by reflecting more sunlight back into space, mimicking a natural process that occurs in the aftermath of large volcanic eruptions. In theory, spraying sulfur and similar particles in sufficient quantities could potentially ease global warming.It’s not technically difficult to release such compounds into the stratosphere. But scientists have mostly (though not entirely) refrained from carrying out even small-scale outdoor experiments. And it’s not...

A startup claims it has launched weather balloons that may have released reflective sulfur particles in the stratosphere, potentially crossing a controversial barrier in the field of solar geoengineering. Geoengineering refers to deliberate efforts to manipulate the climate by reflecting more sunlight back into space, mimicking a natural process that occurs in the aftermath of large volcanic eruptions. In theory, spraying sulfur and similar particles in sufficient quantities could potentially ease global warming. It’s not technically difficult to release such compounds into the stratosphere. But scientists have mostly (though not entirely) refrained from carrying out even small-scale outdoor experiments. And...

Whenever your humble correspondent dips a strawberry into the chocolate fountain at the Golden Corral, one thought always comes to mind: Mark Warner bribery. Why? Because back in 2006 when Warner was governor of Virginia he attempted to influence the Daily Kos convention in Las Vegas, then known as the YearlyKos, into favoring his possible bid for the presidency with a lavish party at the Stratosphere. As we shall see, the Kossacks absolutely loved the idea that they were being bribed as they feasted on the sushi, drank down alcoholic concoctions, and dipped into the chocolate fountain. Therefore it is...

Col. Joe Kittinger may be one of the most interesting people alive today. Not only did he set the record for the highest and longest skydive in history in 1960, but the 85-year-old retired Air Force colonel was also the first person ever to observe the curvature of the Earth from the edge of outer space, and the first man to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean in a helium balloon. Kittinger sat down with “Politics Confidential” to discuss his life’s many adventures and what it was like to help break his own skydiving record in 2012 as part of...

Watch live: Felix Baumgartner's jump from space in skydiving record attempt.

North Atlantic ‘Achilles Heel’ Lets Upper Atmosphere Affect the AbyssSept. 23, 2012 – A University of Utah study suggests something amazing: Periodic changes in winds 15 to 30 miles high in the stratosphere influence the seas by striking a vulnerable “Achilles heel” in the North Atlantic and changing mile-deep ocean circulation patterns, which in turn affect Earth’s climate. “We found evidence that what happens in the stratosphere matters for the ocean circulation and therefore for climate,” says Thomas Reichler, senior author of the study published online Sunday, Sept. 23 in the journal Nature Geoscience. Scientists already knew that events in...

WASHINGTON — When the U.S. State Department announced this week that it finally is going to designate the Haqqani network as a foreign terrorist organization, it was a nonevent for most of our countrymen. That's because few Americans know how deadly the organization is. For that we can thank those at Foggy Bottom who are wedded to the naive hope of a near-term "diplomatic breakthrough" in Afghanistan. Couple that misguided belief with the Obama administration's self-deception that the radical Islamic jihad against the West ended with the demise of Osama bin Laden and it's understandable why the Haqqani network...

Visitors to the Stratosphere tower in Las Vegas no longer need an elevator to get down from Sin City's highest building. A new ride is giving daredevils a cable, a platform and a chance to jump to a blue and black target 829 feet below. SkyJump Las Vegas has opened as the world's highest commercial decelerator descent.

Climate Change: A team of international scientists has finally figured out why sunspots have a dramatic effect on the weather. It shows the folly of fearing the SUV while dismissing that thermonuclear furnace in the sky.Mankind once worshiped the sun. Now the world studiously ignores it as nations prepare to hammer out a successor to the failed Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012, in Copenhagen in December. Something is indeed rotten in Denmark. Our own government is committed to fighting climate change whether it be though Son of Kyoto or our own growth-capping, job-killing cap-and-trade legislation known as Waxman-Markey. Despite...

This offers renewed hope for Svensmark’s theory of cosmic ray modulation of earth’s cloud cover. Here is an interesting correlation published just yesterday in GRL. Cosmic rays detected deep underground reveal secrets of the upper atmosphere Watch the video animation here (MPEG video will play in your media player) Published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters and led by scientists from the UK’s National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) and the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), this remarkable study shows how the number of high-energy cosmic-rays reaching a detector deep underground, closely matches temperature measurements in the upper atmosphere...

How much does it cost to put a rocket into space? Three engineering students at Cambridge University in the UK reckon they'll be able to do it for just £1000 ($1879).

British engineers are preparing to push the limits of aeroplane technology. Zephyr 3, a solar-powered propeller-driven vehicle, is set to fly to 132,000 feet (40 kilometres) in the next few months. Only experimental rocket planes and the space shuttle will have gone higher. It will rise into the stratosphere to take pictures of a giant helium balloon that will attempt to break the world altitude record for a manned envelope. But Zephyr - built by QinetiQ, a commercial offshoot of the UK's Ministry of Defence - is more than just a flying camera gantry. The prototype vehicle, and others like...