Annular Eclipse of Sun on May 20, 2012

An annular eclipse of the Sun occurs on May 20, 2012.  The path over western United States where  partial eclipse will be visible, is mapped (picture, right), thanks to eclipse-maps.com.  "An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the Sun, causing the Sun to look like an annulus (ring), blocking most of the Sun's light. An annular eclipse appears as a partial eclipse over a region thousands of kilometers wide,"  according to Wikepedia. Yes, there's a dedicated page to May 20th eclipse at Wikipedia and eclipse-maps.com, at the latter website there's also an excellent history of solar eclipse maps.  Where's the best place to be for viewing? The large swath (brown area in picture) from Medford, OR to Lubbock TX.   The fun starts at 5:08 PT Sunday in Oregon and concludes in Texas at sunset.  The United States will experience partial eclipse in most areas except for the East Coast. An annular eclipse is called a "ring of fire" (picture, left) - don't miss it!

#DataDump: #SuperMoon, Snooping, Sidesteps and more

#Supermoon Saturday:
May's Full Moon coincides with Perigee,
first of 6 Celestial events this month*

Twilight Language:
Cinco De Derby Moon*
Biggest full moon due this weekend as tides rise around the planet*
Venus to appear in once-in-a-lifetime event Jun5-6*
Sun may soon have four poles, say researchers*
Shuttle Enterprise soars over NYC skyline - NASA dignitaries, fidgety schoolchildren and Leonard Nimoy*
7M Birds Die in US and Canada a Year because of Communication Towers*
Law Prof says Megaupload Prosecution 'Depressing Display Of Abuse Of Government Authority'*
Justice Department Clears Google In Wi-Fi Sniffing Scandal*
Congress Should Grill the FCC Over Redacted Google Wi-Fi Snooping Report*
Google’s 'Engineer Doe' is Marius Milner, Known For Wi-Fi Hacking Tool*
Equipment Maker Caught Installing Backdoor Vows to Fix Following Public Pressure*
UK lawmakers say Rupert Murdoch unfit to run company*
British ISPs Ordered to Block Pirate Bay*
Video: How Apple Sidesteps Billions in Taxes*

sunscare: scientists worry more than solar minimum at hand

Is it only fear-mongering over new observations in article at Before It's News, "Shocked Scientists Ask: Is the Sun Dying?" The solar system is, after all, coursing through relatively unknown region of the galactic ecliptic and sun may be affected in unpredictable ways? The article is, still, of great interest as a regional space weather report, offering a sort of local forecast!  Scientists concerns are threefold: 1) sun's core of hydrogen gases is shrinking, and presents concern, helium gases will be used instead as fuel. Helium would transform Sun into a Red giant. Scientists believed, previously, this phase of Sun's lifespan still billions of years in future.

2) The Sun has been cooling since 1979. Scientists were shaken when a predicted warming trend did not materialize in 2007. The cooling trend is drawing comparisons to the Maunder Minimum, a mini-ice age of the late 1700s. David Hathaway of the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, AL sums up agreement among scientists in Scientific American article, "I think we're almost in violent agreement that this is an interesting minimum". The Sun's so-called "Great Conveyor Belt" has slowed to a crawl, which affects future solar activity. The solar wind, is also, 13 percent cooler and 20 percent less dense. The Sun's heliosphere is shrinking, offering less protection from Cosmic rays.

Perhaps, most alarmist of all, 3) Scientists are concerned about radioactive decay rates speeding up and possibility matter itself is being mutated? Wow! The article concludes with a fitting description and picture of a solar system without its first four planets, vaporized by our Red giant Sun! The present writer believes most readers suffer a degree of fear-fatigue and take a flamethrower in their face to get their attention! It's still a very interesting read!

listening to the sun improves sunspot forecasts

from latimes: Sunspots, those dark regions on the surface of the sun whose high magnetic activity has ripple effects for Earthlings, seem to emerge and fade without warning. But now, by listening to the sounds the sun makes, scientists have managed to predict when a sunspot will appear up to two days beforehand. The findings, published in Friday's edition of the journal Science, could help solar physicists understand how to better predict solar flares and other space weather events that can harm astronauts and damage power and electronics systems on Earth.

first year highlight video from solar observatory

NASA has released highlight video to celebrate first year of Solar Dynamic Observatory mission. Its five year mission is to explore new frontiers and boldly go where no spacecraft has gone before! It's an impressive two minute video of solar flares shooting from a very active Sun!

3/10 defcon: supermoon, double sun, mirage men

extreme 'supermoon' to take place next week*
mystery of two suns in chinese sky leaves scientists puzzled*
does the sun have jupiter-sized companion star in far reaches of solar system?*
persistent evidence of a jovian mass solar companion in the oort cloud*
'mirage men' book on paranoia, technology, psyops & ufo's*
giffords plans to attend husband's space shuttle launch*
US probes 'anonymous' hacker threat over wikileaks soldier*
manning's father condemns treatment of imprisoned son*
zuckerberg's dog, 'beast', gets facebook page*
google is america's british east india company*
video: new robot has incredibly realistic facial expressions*

x-ray flares illuminate huge object near sun

Solar Dynamics Observatory NASA video reveals a very large solid object at close proximity to the Sun. The sphere is clearly visible near mid-line on the left side at 5-8 seconds and 33-34 seconds as the Sun rotates past and flares illuminate area. It appears to be a solid planet-like object? The Big Wobble reports the object stayed motionless for weeks! It is captivating to watch!