Solar Eruption To Reach Earth Soon

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Solar Eruption To Reach Earth Soon

Posted by Soulskill on Friday August 23, 2013 @02:18AM from the everybody-duck dept.

rastos1 writes "Spacecraft from NASA recently observed an eruption on the Sun sending billions of tons of particles toward Earth. The solar eruption, called a coronal mass ejection, occurred Tuesday at 1:24 a.m. EDT (0524 GMT) and sent charged particles streaking outward at 380 miles per second. That's just over 1.3 million mph (2.2 million km/h). The solar fallout from the sun storm is expected to reach Earth over the next few days. Interestingly, an unnamed icy comet from the outer solar system dove into the sun and disintegrated nearly a the same time (video)."

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NBD, it seems by AndyAndyAndyAndy · 2013-08-23 02:22 · Score: 5, Insightful

"These particles cannot travel through the atmosphere to harm humans on Earth, but they can affect electronic systems in satellites and on the ground," NASA officials explained in a statement. [Solar Max Photos: Sun Storms of 2013]

Wednesday's solar storm erupted just 21 hours after another powerful coronal mass ejection (NASA calls them CMEs) on Tuesday (Aug. 20). That solar tempest also sent billions of tons of solar particles on their way to Earth.
So maybe if you have satellite TV you'll see a few spotty moments, but nothing to worry about.

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1. Re:NBD, it seems by epiphani · 2013-08-23 02:27 · Score: 5, Interesting
  
  Yeah, I can't understand why this is news. I've seen it on two sites now.
  This wasn't even an M-class flare, and the CME is only expected to push planetary Kp to 4. As in this doesn't even register as a geomagnetic storm. See this page for an explanation of Kp and you can also see this page for the predicted impact.
  Somehow some idiot picked up on this, and this news is making the rounds. I've seen a lot of people confused by the coverage - this is a bloody whisper in the solar flare world.
  
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2. Re:NBD, it seems by stevegee58 · 2013-08-23 02:39 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  Yes, but it provides a distraction for the public from the collapsing economy and rampant domestic NSA surveillance.
3. Re:NBD, it seems by dkleinsc · 2013-08-23 02:40 · Score: 1
  
  Also, you may be able to see the aurora much closer to the equator than normal, which is kinda nifty.
  
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4. Re:NBD, it seems by nomorecwrd · 2013-08-23 02:43 · Score: 1
  
  So, no marshmellows to put out on this flare?
5. Re:NBD, it seems by jellomizer · 2013-08-23 02:55 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Chill dude. Stop get off the news channels for a bit. Go out get a job, volunteer.
  Bitching on the internet, and trying to twist every new article into being relevant to your particular we are doomed senserio. Isn't going to help anyone, and it just makes you feel bad.
  If the worlds going to end. Might as well go out and enjoy yourself.
  
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6. Re:NBD, it seems by jamessnell · 2013-08-23 03:09 · Score: 2
  
  Tell that to the telegraph operators with burned hands from a big CME back in the 1800s. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_storm_of_1859
7. Re:NBD, it seems by Ghjnut · 2013-08-23 03:22 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  It's good to see stuff like this hit the front page. It helps space out the onslaught of disappointing stories slashdot breaks regarding the incompetence/malice of leadership in this country. Seeing a cruising ice comet hit the sun with a CME following is pretty damn cool too.
  
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8. Re:NBD, it seems by freeze128 · 2013-08-23 03:39 · Score: 1
  
  What concerns me is that this was learned about on Tuesday, and it's just getting any kind of media traction today on FRIDAY. If this were a serious event, that wouldn't be enough time to do much. This has been a test of NASA's emergency broadcast system.... And it has failed miserably. If this had been an actual emergency, we would all be dead by now.
9. Re:NBD, it seems by Hatta · 2013-08-23 03:43 · Score: 1
  
  Yeah, I can't understand why this is news. I've seen it on two sites now.
  If it's likely to cause aurora in locations that don't usually get aurora, it's definitely news.
  
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10. Re:NBD, it seems by epiphani · 2013-08-23 03:56 · Score: 2
  
  Yeah, I can't understand why this is news. I've seen it on two sites now.
  If it's likely to cause aurora in locations that don't usually get aurora, it's definitely news.
  No. No it's not. On both your points. No.
  
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11. Re:NBD, it seems by Hatta · 2013-08-23 04:01 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  NOAA tells me that the auroral oval extends as far south as my home state of Nebraska, which is rare. That's not national news, but it's certainly local news.
  
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12. Re:NBD, it seems by Sir+or+Madman · 2013-08-23 04:12 · Score: 1
  
  A comet hitting the sun is pretty awesome, I don't care how often it happens.
  It's breathtaking to watch and beats 99.9% of "real news" any day.
  I wish we had more mainstream news like this. It might cause people reflect more on all the petty crap that gets them down. "Wah, I lost my keys...wait, at least I didn't get smoked by a frickin' ice comet!"
13. Re:NBD, it seems by tlhIngan · 2013-08-23 04:15 · Score: 1
  
  Tell that to the telegraph operators with burned hands from a big CME back in the 1800s. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_storm_of_1859
  
  Or, more recently the residents of Quebec, Canada, in 1989 where the power grid was disrupted due magnetic induction caused by the solar storm (the store interacts with Earth's magnetic field, the varying magnetic field then induces currents into the long transmission lines).
  Given today's society is even MORE dependent on the power grid and even MORE dependent on satellites, they are of somewhat more worry. Heck, the east coast blackout of 2003 was fairly disruptive. Now imagine what fun to be had when GPS goes down (which can take out seemingly unrelated things like cellphones, since GPS is used for precise timing purposes)
  While not quite a superstorm, it's still something to monitor.
14. Re:NBD, it seems by AdamHaun · 2013-08-23 04:32 · Score: 1
  
  How many times do we need to see this "coincidence", of a comet diving into the sun, followed by an instaneous CME, to at least calculate the probability of CMEs being caused by comets vs not caused by comets?
  If you watch the video, you'll see that the CME happens well before the comet hits the sun.
  
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15. Re:NBD, it seems by Bob+the+Super+Hamste · 2013-08-23 04:53 · Score: 1
  
  I might actually care if this was a couple of orders of magnitude closer in power to that one. For me all this means is that if the sky stays clear I might be able to drive out a ways into the country and show my oldest the aurora since that might be a big deal for him at age 5. The biggest issue is the amount of light pollution in my area.
  
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16. Re:NBD, it seems by Al+Al+Cool+J · 2013-08-23 05:06 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  The CME was the Sun's defense mechanism when it saw the comet coming right at it. It ejected in self-defense.
17. Re:NBD, it seems by Immerman · 2013-08-23 05:20 · Score: 1
  
  Ah, so you're saying the the sun is actually an alien vessel with a high power point defense system? Interesting...
  In fairness it's not *impossible* that an incoming object could subtly disrupt the sun's magnetosphere and somehow catalyze a CME. The miniscule energy of even a full on size large comet "impact" (like anything's going to survive passing through the upper atmosphere) would seem to render it unlikely though, so I'll wait stick to doing my higher probabilty research first. Now if you'll excuse me I have unicorn-hunting safari to get ready for.
  
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18. Re:NBD, it seems by Joce640k · 2013-08-23 05:24 · Score: 1
  
  If it's likely to cause aurora in locations that don't usually get aurora, it's definitely news.
  That argument only holds if they post the news the day it happens, not after the event...
  (which they always do)
  
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19. Re:NBD, it seems by Joce640k · 2013-08-23 05:26 · Score: 1
  
  Would have been even niftier if they told us last Tuesday so we could travel North a bit...
  
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20. Re:NBD, it seems by Immerman · 2013-08-23 05:31 · Score: 1
  
  Oh quite certainly. However if it was big enough to ignite telegraph lines, such as the 1859 "Carrington Flare", there's an awful lot of of damage-mitigation we would be able to do, and I fully expect the word would be going out within hours of the observation.
  This one though, who cares? It was mentioned on the "solar weather channel" and that's all it deserves. If the media commented on it every time the sun belches in our direction they wouldn't have time to discuss anything else.
  
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21. Re:NBD, it seems by Immerman · 2013-08-23 05:32 · Score: 1
  
  Eh, no big deal. Those things are barely habitable to begin with.
  
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22. Re:NBD, it seems by MickLinux · 2013-08-23 05:32 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  No, you're imagining the edge of the sun (!?!) as being the edge of visible gases. In terms of the sun as a single electromagnetic plasma unit, the sun is much larger than that; the comet was already in the sun.
  As the water evaporates off the comet, and then ionizes, it is going to disrupt the magnetic fields of the plasma streaming out of the sun. That, in turn, is going to cause a response. The response will attempt to restore the magnetic energy to neutral. Conservation of momentum, then, is likely to cause exactly the response you see.
  But don't take my word for it. Go back, and look at the graphs of the sun every single time we can record a cometfall. Now, find the number of CMEs of similar order of magnitude (nothing smaller than 1/10 the size) that occur each year. Then, taking the same "t seconds before impact" as your zero, calculate the probability of the CME being coincidence, vs. the probability of it being causally related.
  
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23. Re:NBD, it seems by Gilmoure · 2013-08-23 05:33 · Score: 1
  
  The sun's name is Ned?
  
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24. Re:NBD, it seems by Immerman · 2013-08-23 05:45 · Score: 1
  
  What does the NSA have to do with the end of the world? We now have government confirmation that they are operating a secret domestic surveillance program that would make the Gestapo jizz their pants, and that sort of power *will* eventually be abused horribly, if it hasn't already. And that the secret court providing oversight has deemed it unconstitutional and been ignored. Not end-of-the-world shit, but something that every US citizen should be outraged over, and trying everything they can think of to get shut down if they want this country to maintain even a passing semblance to democracy.
  Sure, other topics are also of interest - but nothing else even begins to approach the significance that the current political discussion will likely have on ourselves, our children, and quite likely many generations to come. And we have a long and easily confirmed history of the big media conglomerates "manufacturing" stories to distract attention from politically inconvenient information, so the GP's post is a perfectly valid observation.
  
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25. Re:NBD, it seems by Immerman · 2013-08-23 05:49 · Score: 1
  
  Yes, a large CME is something to be worried about, and it's only a matter of time before another one hits us.
  But just because massive wildfires are dangerous doesn't mean that a candle being lit is a news story. The current CME will make for a slightly larger and brighter Aurora than normally visible, that's it. Nothing newsworthy unless you live in one of the few areas effected.
  
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26. Re:NBD, it seems by rastos1 · 2013-08-23 06:19 · Score: 2
  
  I've submitted the story. I'm so sorry I could not deliver a more newsworthy eruption. I'll do my best next time to at last bring the GPS satellites down.
27. Re:NBD, it seems by jovius · 2013-08-23 06:44 · Score: 1
  
  So true. Another way media reacts is a day later, when the headlines call people to see auroras tonight (which happened last night). Anyway, here's cool data 3D data and predictions about the solar wind by NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center: Solar Wind Prediction. When solar wind really hits the speed can be over 1000 km/s, which probably will not happen because the maximum at hand is weak anyway.
28. Re:NBD, it seems by MickLinux · 2013-08-23 06:44 · Score: 1
  
  Note that the CME is no worse than the two streams of solar wind that the Earth passes through regularly. The plasma density is extremely low: that is one comet's mass of CME spread out over 4*Pi*(1 AU)^2. In area, and a significant fraction of an ÃU in thickness.
  
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29. Re:NBD, it seems by mikael · 2013-08-23 06:50 · Score: 1
  
  And if it disrupts the ionosphere, and we get radio stations that we don't normally receive, that's definitely news .. or pop music, talk radio or jazz...
  
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30. Re:NBD, it seems by mikael · 2013-08-23 06:52 · Score: 1
  
  People in the UK started hearing radio stations from the other side of the North Sea. And the aurora that night were awesome - bands of green light would travel across the sky and in the point opposite the Sun was a reddish-green + shaped spot.
  
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31. Re:NBD, it seems by Angeret · 2013-08-23 06:54 · Score: 1
  
  I wish I had points to give. Nicely said and better than what I had in mind. Time some people realised that there's more to the sun than simply "ooh look shiny thing in sky, nice & warm, aaaah!" The sun might look nice & stable out there in the middle of the solar system, but what would it take to screw things up for it and, ultimately, us?
32. Re:NBD, it seems by dierdorf · 2013-08-23 07:39 · Score: 2
  
  "Every single time we can record a cometfall," my ass. The sun-watching observatories see one of these every two or three days and there is NO correlation to CMEs. Most of them are in the same orbit and are called Kreuz sungrazers, the remains of a big comet that broke up maybe 2,000 years ago when it passed too close to the sun. The bigger Kreuz chunks that miss the sun and come on around have been some of the most spectacular comets ever seen on Earth, simply because they generate huge tails on their close pass. This was an itty-bitty one -- the only reason it was visible at all was that it had already evaporated and we were seeing the dust and water vapor cloud where the comet used to be.
  
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33. Re:NBD, it seems by MickLinux · 2013-08-23 07:40 · Score: 1
  
  Let me posit a possible mechanism, taking this a step farther. The solar wind we experience consists of charged plasma being driven outwards, away from the sun. Now, that plasma consists of electrons and protons.
  Likewise, the comet atmosphere -- stretched out thin to the front and back -- strikes the solar wind at hypersonic speeds, and ionizes. It, too, has electrons and protons. The electrons, being of light mass, get driven back with the solar wind almost immediately. The protons don't.
  Likewise, the solar wind's electrons get driven back, to follow the comet plasma. The protons don't.
  At this point, you have a collision of protons against protons, but not a striking collions, but a magnetic collision. create one magnetic field; the solar wind creates an opposite magnetic field. These work together to decelerate the relative velocity. But half of that mass involves accelerating solar wind.
  Moreover, the magnetic field will act at the speed of light, preceeding the comet atmosphere's actual entry.
  Thus, the entry of the comet should drive out a CME to meet the comet.
  
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34. Re:NBD, it seems by Known+Nutter · 2013-08-23 08:22 · Score: 1
  
  Yeah, I can't understand why this is news.
  Doesn't it become news when images of the event are set to some epic, apocalyptic sounding musical score as heard in the youtube link?
  ... tongue firmly in cheek.
  
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35. Re:NBD, it seems by Wireless+Joe · 2013-08-23 13:43 · Score: 1
  
  Chill dude....Go out get a job, volunteer... Might as well go out and enjoy yourself.
  Warning: incompatible advice detected.
Translation please! by Black+Parrot · 2013-08-23 02:23 · Score: 1, Redundant

sent charged particles streaking outward at 380 miles per second. That's just over 1.3 million mph (2.2 million km/h).
Could you give that in manhattans^(1/2) per dog year, too?

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1. Re:Translation please! by egcagrac0 · 2013-08-23 02:34 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Could you give that in manhattans^(1/2) per dog year, too?
  On a scale of one to tipsy, I'd say it's right between ocelot feathers and 7!.
2. Re:Translation please! by SJHillman · 2013-08-23 02:39 · Score: 3, Insightful
  
  Putting it in terms relative to the speed of light does help a lot. It won't make a huge difference to most casual readers, but anyone who knows that the Earth is roughly 8 lightminutes away from the sun (fairly common knowledge) can easily use the .11c to figure out exactly how fast it is in a meaningful way. Using mph/kph isn't meaningful to most readers because it's on such a different scale from anything else we'd normally measure in mph/kph.
3. Re:Translation please! by wonkey_monkey · 2013-08-23 02:54 · Score: 1
  
  380 miles per second
  
  .11c
  Uh... no.
  
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4. Re:Translation please! by jellomizer · 2013-08-23 03:04 · Score: 1
  
  Well for the most of us, Miles per second doesn't really relate to our frame of reference.
  1 Mile per second is really fast for us. Heck a Mile per Minute is usually what we consider driving rather fast.
  We don't think of speed in Miles per second, but Miles per Hours or Kilometers per hour.
  So converting to Miles per Hour and Kilometers per hour when they talk about speed, is there to help the general public get a good sense of the speed in terms they normally deal with.
  It also gives us a better understanding of the vastness of space. The fact that the Sun is still 5 days away at 1.3 million miles per hour. Puts things into perspective better than 380 miles per second.
  
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5. Re:Translation please! by GameboyRMH · 2013-08-23 03:40 · Score: 1
  
  Actually yes, that's much more useful, thanks.
  
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6. Re:Translation please! by Tynin · 2013-08-23 04:21 · Score: 1
  
  380 miles per second
  
  .11c
  Uh... no.
  .11c would be ~20491 miles per second, quite the difference indeed.
7. Re:Translation please! by TCQuad · 2013-08-23 04:24 · Score: 1
  
  Wolfram's coming up with 295.4 million root Manhattans per dog year.
8. Re:Translation please! by Immerman · 2013-08-23 06:05 · Score: 1
  
  I disagree. 380 miles is a distance we can wrap our heads around - we've probably personally traveled that far many times. 1 second is a time we clearly understand as well. And so we can kinda visualize just how fast 380miles/s might be. Yikes!
  1.3 million mph on the other hand is just a really big number, way beyond our ability to comprehend it. Most people start having trouble actually visualizing what a number means long before it even reaches the thousands - the difference between several thousand and several million is essentially non-existent to our imagination. If you knew offhand that the Earth is about 24,000 miles around perhaps you could try to scale that down to visualize it as going around the world 52 times in an hour, but how many people truly have an intuitional-level understanding of just how big the world really is? A fraction of a percent I'd wager.
  
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9. Re: Translation please! by r33per · 2013-08-23 08:37 · Score: 1
  
  That's about the length of Scotland per second.
  You know, Scotland: that other place she's the Queen of...
Check out the video though ! by ACK!! · 2013-08-23 02:29 · Score: 4, Interesting

The whole icy comet diving into the sun and the bad ass far-side Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) is worth the 1:20 of your time. Very cool. Watching it happen is like watching something out of an old video game very interesting. Science can be quite a wild thing at times.

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1. Re:Check out the video though ! by jrumney · 2013-08-23 03:12 · Score: 1
  
  Even cooler is the fact that it was posted by a time traveller.
  
  Published on 19 Aug 2013
  During the late hours of August 20th, an unnamed icy comet...
2. Re:Check out the video though ! by Thud457 · 2013-08-23 03:13 · Score: 1
  
  It's called a sun dive. Sun ... Dive. It's very simple to understand. What do you expect if you steal Hotblack Desiato's stunt ship?''
  
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3. Re:Check out the video though ! by pr0t0 · 2013-08-23 03:50 · Score: 2
  
  The comet looks massive! It's hard to get a sense of it's scale given the sun's corona and the comet's corona, but that thing looks like a planetoid streaking in there. Is there any news on how big that was?
  
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4. Re:Check out the video though ! by Alain+Williams · 2013-08-23 04:15 · Score: 1
  
  But why do they need an awful soundtrack ? What is wrong with silence ?
5. Re:Check out the video though ! by Raenex · 2013-08-23 04:59 · Score: 1
  
  Is there any news on how big that was?
  If only there was a search engine to find out such answers. Alas, I guess we'll never know.
Simultaneity problem with that comet by Derec01 · 2013-08-23 02:35 · Score: 3, Funny

The sun is vast, and that outward pulse appears to happen almost simultaneous with the impact of the comet.
Which means I very much doubt it's related, as an effect would still have to have traveled at least some major fraction of the Sun's radius and back before the event would have been triggered.
Granted, I suppose the comet could have been traveling away from us, and since the signal of the blast is traveling *toward* us, it basically pulled a Picard Maneuver and partially overtook the comet light.
1. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by DeathToBill · 2013-08-23 02:37 · Score: 2
  
  But what if the sun-dwellers saw the comet coming?
  
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2. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by lightknight · 2013-08-23 02:47 · Score: 1
  
  Hmm. Solar eruptions due to things dropping into the sun...
  
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3. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by Derec01 · 2013-08-23 02:53 · Score: 1
  
  Sure, simultaneity is far from the only or strongest reason that's silly. But it is the one written as "Oh, isn't it interesting that..." in the summary. I don't like *wink-nudge* suggestions like that in scientific summaries. Just say it's unrelated.
4. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by wonkey_monkey · 2013-08-23 02:59 · Score: 1
  
  Who's saying the events are causally connected?
  
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5. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by thaylin · 2013-08-23 03:02 · Score: 1
  
  IF you watch the eary videos it shows a mass ejecting from both sides. Now if you consider that the comet is traveling VERY FAST, and that most transfers like this does not require the item to actually travel, just the atoms to shift.
  
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6. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by Zorpheus · 2013-08-23 03:12 · Score: 1
  
  This seems to be a time lapse video, and it is not clear how much it is sped up.
7. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by gstoddart · 2013-08-23 03:18 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  But it is the one written as "Oh, isn't it interesting that..." in the summary. I don't like *wink-nudge* suggestions like that in scientific summaries. Just say it's unrelated.
  Except, can we conclusively say it's unrelated??
  Certainly the two events were correlated -- if the CME happened at pretty much the same time as the comet impact, it's definitely interesting to note that.
  I mean, what are the odds that at mostly the same time you're seeing the one event, the other has just happened? In all likelihood the comet didn't have enough mass to have any affect on the sun, but it's definitely not obvious why the two events should happen so closely together.
  If I crash my car into a lamp post, and at that same time the building next to me explodes ... it's hard not to think "WTF happened here?". You wouldn't expect my impact with the lamp post to have enough energy or connection to the exploding building but you'd certainly notice it.
  So, either this is a really freak occurrence where two interesting but totally unrelated things happened at the same time (and I have no reason to believe it isn't) .. or something really fascinating was at work that nobody has a clue about.
  Of course, it's a completely un-testable thing since we can't just crash comets into the sun on demand ... but I would definitely agree with wording at as "Interestingly", if for nothing else than the sheer coincidence of the timing when you're talking about things on an astronomical scale.
  
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8. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by joe_frisch · 2013-08-23 03:43 · Score: 1
  
  Any idea of the relative kinetic energy of the comet and the mass ejection? Solar impacting objects are moving quite fast, and the corona is rather diffuse, still I would expect the CME to represent a lot more energy, with no clear mechanism for triggering by the comet impact.
  There is enough time for electromagnetic signals to transmit the information across the sun. The comet presumably looks like a clump of fast moving plasma by the time it hits.
9. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by angelbar · 2013-08-23 04:12 · Score: 1
  
  What Picar Maneuver?, it adjust its jacket? *hides behind screen*
  
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10. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by gr8_phk · 2013-08-23 04:13 · Score: 1
  
  Since CMEs occur as a result of an abrupt change in the suns magnetic field (lines snapping to a new location) it does not seem implausible that a foreign object entering the outer reaches of some magnetic field loops should cause such a shift prior to impact. The even on the opposite side seems odd to me though. Ultimately we need to have a history of such impacts with mapping of the magnetic field in order to decide if the CME was triggered by the comet or not. Just more impacts without CMEs don't rule it out depending on the suns magnetic field in the area. Of course it could be random chance too.
11. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by mdielmann · 2013-08-23 04:14 · Score: 1
  
  Of course, it's a completely un-testable thing since we can't just crash comets into the sun on demand ... but I would definitely agree with wording at as "Interestingly", if for nothing else than the sheer coincidence of the timing when you're talking about things on an astronomical scale.
  Of course it's testable. Here it is. Wait and observe until a few more large bodies hit the sun. Observe results. Done. Isn't this how most astronomy and astrophysics research is done?
  
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12. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by mdielmann · 2013-08-23 04:20 · Score: 2
  
  I don't normally reply to myself, but I watched the video, and other linked videos. Here's one from October 2011. Looks like this one wasn't entirely inconsistent with past behaviour.
  
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13. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by AdamHaun · 2013-08-23 04:31 · Score: 1
  
  If you watch the video, you can see that the CME happens before the comet hits, and actually vaporizes the comet on the way out.
  
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14. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by adolf · 2013-08-23 04:35 · Score: 1
  
  If you watch the video, you can see that the CME happens before the comet hits, and actually vaporizes the comet on the way out.
  Indeed. I conclude from this that the sun was merely defending itself against an invasion.
  
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15. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by Bob+the+Super+Hamste · 2013-08-23 05:05 · Score: 1
  
  There was an article in the August 14, 2013 The New Scientist about just such a thing.
  
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  Time to offend someone
16. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by Bob+the+Super+Hamste · 2013-08-23 05:06 · Score: 1
  
  It sounds like work is already being done on this.
  
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  Time to offend someone
17. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by TheFakeMcCoy · 2013-08-23 05:38 · Score: 1
  
  Clearly some of the sun-dewllers, sunnians, (we really should come up with a proper name to ease their take over of the planet) panicked when they saw the coment and sent their only child to earth to live amongst our people as a beacon of hope... unfortunately it will just smash into magentosphere and disrupt gps and direct tv.
18. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by Immerman · 2013-08-23 06:20 · Score: 1
  
  The CME wasn't "even on the opposite side", it only looks that way because it's coming straight at the camera. Considering that the comet's apparent (2-D) distance was still over a solar-radius away from the sun when the CME occurred that would mean it was probably at least 60 degrees of solar longitude away from the CME. Not *impossible* that it was somehow related, but highly unlikely.
  
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19. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by joe_frisch · 2013-08-23 06:56 · Score: 1
  
  True, but it is probably easier to imagine mechanisms that don't need a lot of energy gain.
20. Re:Simultaneity problem with that comet by thegarbz · 2013-08-23 10:48 · Score: 1
  
  The CME is stored energy contained by the sun's magnetic fields. It only takes a small disruption to the magnetic field to release it.
  I would be looking at comparing the energy of the comet to the energy required to prevent CMEs, not the total energy released by the event.
manhattans^(1/2) per dog year by barlevg · 2013-08-23 02:36 · Score: 2

294,585,994
One word by RivenAleem · 2013-08-23 02:37 · Score: 5, Funny

*Burp*
1. Re:One word by Lithdren · 2013-08-23 05:16 · Score: 1
  
  Hahaha the sun burped at us!
  Wait...wait if the comet hit one side of the sun...and the CME came from th...the oth..
  Oh god...
Check your math by barlevg · 2013-08-23 02:40 · Score: 3, Insightful

2.2e6 kph = 0.002c...
I guess .... by PPH · 2013-08-23 02:46 · Score: 4, Funny

... Ballmer got the message.

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In other news... by Narcocide · 2013-08-23 02:48 · Score: 1

My wireless just died.
Re:Meanwhile The Fucktarded Shitdot Sheeple Fags a by fredrated · 2013-08-23 02:48 · Score: 1

Run! Charles Manson is out of jail!
obvious by slashmydots · 2013-08-23 02:52 · Score: 3, Informative

The timing is just too perfect. This is obviously an alien missile testing our resistance to EM radiation and charged particles and stuff.
1. Re:obvious by ArcadeMan · 2013-08-23 05:59 · Score: 1
  
  The CME happened right before the ice comet hit the Sun. We could also speculate that aliens fired that ice coment into the Sun to diminish the strength of the CME, hence saving all our asses.
  
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2. Re:obvious by slashmydots · 2013-08-24 15:27 · Score: 1
  
  Looooool who the hell modded that informative? OP here btw.
Re:Spell Check by bobbied · 2013-08-23 02:58 · Score: 1

Know misspelled words their so I-Spell will knot catch thee problem.. What Eu halve is eh grammar is shew.

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Giving plot to real life by gmuslera · 2013-08-23 02:58 · Score: 1

Somewhat the sun was hit by an "unnamed" comet, and then the Sun is sending an eruption right into our direction, as it was a connection between those events. Is not uncommon that the sun is hit by comets. Unless this one had a core of exotic matter or was a disguised photon torpedo should be no relation between those events..
That was no comet by NoNonAlphaCharsHere · 2013-08-23 02:58 · Score: 3, Funny

That was a Disaster Area stunt ship.
Re:A giant solar is flare heading this way?? OK. by nomorecwrd · 2013-08-23 03:05 · Score: 1

How big is this flare? Can it be measured in terms of Star Trek movies?
Goo by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · 2013-08-23 03:17 · Score: 1

Yawn. Wake me when a giant asteroid is about to hit us.
Ya know what? Not even then.

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Re:Grammar by NoNonAlphaCharsHere · 2013-08-23 03:29 · Score: 1

Looks like we found a grammar nazi with a limited vocabulary. "Dove" (rhymes with "trove") is a perfectly acceptable (and commonly used) past tense of "dive".
One of my favorites by jratcliffe · 2013-08-23 03:45 · Score: 4, Funny

Astrophysicist walks into a bar, orders a Mexican beer. Bartender yells, "OK, that's it, everybody out NOW!!!" As they're all leaving, another customer asks the astrophysicist, "what the heck is going on?" Astrophysicist replies "Coronal Mass Ejection."
Re:A giant solar is flare heading this way?? OK. by Anonymous Coward · 2013-08-23 03:54 · Score: 1

How big is this flare? Can it be measured in terms of Star Trek movies?
About 1.3 J.J. Abrams lens flares - so yeah it's huge!
Solar observing from home by umafuckit · 2013-08-23 04:25 · Score: 5, Interesting

For those who are interested, it's possible to get the feeds from the orbital solar observatories and make your own movies of the Sun in action. A nice piece of software to automate this is jhelioviewer: http://jhelioviewer.org/ You can even purchase a small solar telescope that will allow you to view the sun safely at hydrogen alpha wavelengths (at which a lot of features are visible). A popular beginner scope is the Meade PST: http://www.meade.com/product_pages/coronado/scopes/pst.php (Lunt is another good manufacturer). With that you can see solar flares, prominences, sun spots, etc. Prominences are particularly fun because they change visibly over the time-course of minutes; so you can literally see the Sun watch the sun change before your eyes. Here's a link on what's possible to see visually: http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org/resources/solar-observing/observing-the-sun-in-h-alpha/

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Good by AndyKron · 2013-08-23 05:16 · Score: 1

Good. I hope it burns us to a fucking crisp
Re:my star trigger test was successful by Thud457 · 2013-08-23 05:59 · Score: 1

I told Chmee to plot a route so the orbits wouldn't intersect. Now he's triggered the automated defenses and burned off all his fur.

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You had me going there by Provocateur · 2013-08-23 06:08 · Score: 1

I was right with you there until you decided to lump everything else (possibly related) under "stuff"

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Steve Ballmer by puddingebola · 2013-08-23 06:08 · Score: 1

And it happens at the same time that Steve Ballmer announces retirement. And people say Astrology is crap.
Space Sex by Suffering+Bastard · 2013-08-23 06:22 · Score: 1

Looks to me like the comet is a sperm cell impregnating the Sun...then the Sun has an orgasm.

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- Deep Thought
Apocalypse Now by slash.jit · 2013-08-23 06:42 · Score: 1

Oh... Is it time for another Doomsday movie ?
Here It Comes... by Scarletdown · 2013-08-23 12:24 · Score: 1

It could be worse. At least it wasn't an eruption from Uranus.

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If anyone really cares by sternlight · 2013-08-23 17:12 · Score: 1

You can get regular email geomagnetic storm reports and forecasts classified by severity. This one didn't rattle any expert's cages
Tuesday? And it's posted on Friday? by doccus · 2013-08-24 22:13 · Score: 1

This would have never slipped by the editors with the old /. And it was a crap CME anyways. Is somebody trying to repeatedly trying to push the panic button?
Well It's Sunday by tmjva · 2013-08-25 04:15 · Score: 1

Well it's Sunday and we're all still h

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