After a few days spent napping our Sun wakes up with a new set of regions rotating into view. The first is region 3310, which has already fired a near X-class flare and promises to give us a good show over the next two weeks. Amateur radio operators and GPS users, expect radio blackouts to pick up again, which could interfere with signal reception on Earth’s dayside. Aurora photographers will enjoy a bit more quiet time this week, with the possible exception of a slight disturbance on the 19-20th when a glancing blow coupled with a small pocket of fast solar wind could cause some aurora views at high latitudes. Impacts should be minor so likely we will need to wait until next week for more aurora activity. Learn the details of the new active regions rotating into view, watch the big solar storm launched on the Sun’s farside, and see what else is in store this week.

This week our Sun keeps activity at mild levels with some wispy solar storms and a only a few active regions in Earth view. One of these is region 3272, which has fired a couple big flares, which will keep radio blackouts on the menu this week. In addition, we do have a small coronal hole that will be rotating into the Earth-strike zone over the next few days and along with the wispy solar storms that should graze Earth to the south, aurora photographers at high latitudes could get a little bit of a show about mid-week. Learn the details of the coming solar storms and fast wind, check out some highlights from the recent G4-level solar storm, and see what else our Sun has in store this week.

This week our Sun switches gears, with solar flare activity falling and solar storm activity picking up. We have a stealthy solar storm lurking in front of some fast solar wind coming this week, in fact, the stealthy solar storm has just arrived! The initial impact is strong (at a G3-level, but it has diminished slightly). The nice thing is that this storm looks stronger than anticipated so we could easily get some aurora down to mid-latitudes over the next couple of days. Aurora photographers should be sure to keep their batteries charged. As for amateur radio operators and GPS users, they should be smiling this week as the big flare players of last week have all rotated to the Sun’s farside. We have dropped down to minor noise conditions with a low chance for radio blackouts on the dayside of Earth. This means propagation and reception will stay good on the dayside, but the nightside will be impacted due to the solar storm effects. Learn the details of the solar storm hitting Earth now, find out when and where aurora will be visible and see what else is in store!

Our Sun gets busy this week launching multiple solar storms, some of which are Earth-directed and one massive storm that is farsided. The first of the Earth-directed storms has just arrived (a bit earlier than forecasted) and aurora photographers at high latitudes are already getting a good show. However, the impact thus far is on the mild side so aurora photographers at mid-latitudes might have to wait a bit to see if things intensify with the second solar storm expected to arrive on the 15th. Amateur radio operators and GPS users at mid-latitudes should be enjoying a break from the big radio blackouts we had last week, but the massive farside blast has launched a radiation storm that we are feeling here at Earth. This means HF communication and GPS navigation is being affected over the poles. Pilots, air crew, and high-risk passengers should take into consideration the higher radiation doses right now and plan their routes accordingly. Luckily the radiation storm is only at an S1-minor level and things should return to normal within the next 48 hours. Learn details of the mystery farside blast, see when the Earth-directed solar storms will arrive and when to expect aurora, and find out what else our Sun has in store.

This week we are finally calming down just a little before more activity rotates into view. We will be experiencing some unsettled solar wind as a small pocket of fast solar wind rolls on through, but likely only aurora photographers at high latitudes will be able to benefit and get some views. That being said, we are seeing a filament beginning to lift off now so the forecast may change quite quickly! We will have another big region rotating into view over the next few days, which will keep the solar flux high and possibly increase the risk for radio blackouts this week on Earth’s dayside. Amateur radio operators and GPS users should expect some minor noise that could affect radio propagation and signal reception on Earth’s dayside over the next few days, with the potential for the noise to rise to moderate levels near the end of the week. Learn the details of the coming activity and see what else our Sun has in store!

We are feeling the impact of the first of two solar storms in what will be a 1,2-punch over the next few days. This first storm is already lighting up the skies with aurora in the UK and as of this writing we are beginning to see aurora as far south in the USA in places like Massachusetts and New York. Aurora photographers should take advantage of this opportunity as views should be plentiful and bright even deep into mid-latitudes. Amateur radio operators and GPS users, however, are dealing with less than optimal conditions. Radio blackouts up to an R2-level are likely, which means signal reception could be poor. In addition, we also have an ongoing solar radiation storm, which affects radio communications and navigation at high latitudes. Airline pilots and high-risk passengers should also take the radiation storm conditions into consideration when making flight plans as the conditions could remain at elevated levels through the end of the week. Learn the details of the 1,2-solar storm punch, find out when and where aurora may be visible, and see what else the Sun has in store this week.

This week our Sun goes viral with a stunning polar vortex that reveals some of its mysterious dynamics in the one final region still uncharted by solar telescopes (that is until Solar Orbiter begins to climb to higher latitudes later in its mission). This vortex has now been cited in many media outlets as ” a piece of the Sun breaks off” but dont believe the hype. It is all part of the perfectly normal and stunning solar ballet! Turning towards the weather, we are still coming down from some fast solar wind that brought us to storm levels for a short while and is bringing some nice aurora to mid-latitudes, but things should calm down over the weekend. More storms are likely in store because we have a lot of big-flare players that have returned or have emerged in Earth view this week. Over the past several days we have had over 12 radio blackouts on Earth’s dayside. This means radio operators, GPS users, and pilots will notice degradation in HF communications, and possibly GPS reception on the dayside, near dawn and dusk, and over the polar regions of Earth. Learn the details of all the Sun’s activity and see what else might be in store this week.

This week our Sun quiets down as the remaining two big flare players rotate to the Sun’s farside. We are still dealing with a bit of fast solar wind from a coronal hole that is rotating through the Earth-strike zone, but it is underperforming thus far. Aurora photographers at high latitudes can get a show through the weekend, but those at mid-latitudes will likely need to wait for another week or so for a better chance. At least amateur radio operators and GPS users will appreciate the quiet as it means less noise on the radio bands and better reception of GPS signals over the coming week. Pilots and aviators alike will also relish the low risk for radiation storms, which means clear skies even for polar routes. Learn the details of this week’s space weather and see what else our Sun has in store.

This week our Star continues firing on all cylinders as over half of the nine active regions in Earth-view are either big-flare players or solar storm producers. the short-duration flares we enjoyed last week have given way to longer-duration flares that accompany solar storm launches. As such we now have one partly-Earth-directed solar storm that will graze Earth sometime around the 19th. Slow traffic in the solar wind ahead will likely cause a pileup before the storm arrives so effects at earth could begin as early as January 18. Aurora photographers at high-latitudes should get a sustained show that could last through the 20th. Aurora is also possible to mid-latitudes, but more sporadically. Amateur radio operators should rejoice this week as solar flux has now topped a new record, crossing over the 200-mark for the first time since Solar Cycle 25 began. Propagation will be excellent, despite the noise but long-duration R1 to R2-level radio blackouts will still be common on Earth’s dayside. GPS users at low latitudes should also be aware that as solar flux continues to increase, reception issues will worsen in the afternoon and early evening. Since issues are cumulative, GPS reception can be especially problematic near dawn and dusk when solar flares are also occurring. Learn the details of the coming solar storm, watch how radio blackouts from the big-flare players impact our communications, and find out what else our Sun has in store. Want early access to these forecasts, tutorials on Space Weather, & more? Visit: https://patreon.com/SpaceweatherWoman

This week the weather from our star remains at moderate levels. Impacts early this week have been mainly due to fast solar wind from some small coronal holes that are now rotating to the Sun’s farside. However, another larger coronal hole will send us some more fast solar wind over the next few days. Couple that with a side-swiping mini-solar storm today and aurora photographers at high latitudes could get a good show in through the new year. Aurora photographers at mid-latitudes might also get a chance for some sporadic shows, but they will be more fleeting. We also have several large active regions that are sporting big solar flares. Amateur radio operators and GPS users should expect radio blackouts on Earth’s dayside, easily over the rest of this week. Learn the details of the fast solar wind, find out when and where aurora is expected, and see what else our Sun has in store!