Monitoring and Modeling Space Weather

   How do we know what kind of "weather" we're having in space? Scientists use a network of ground-based observatories combined with satellite-based instruments to monitor solar activity, measure magnetic fields, and detect many types of radiation. They also use complex computer models to help predict the ebb and flow of space weather systems.
Sunspots don't look that big when you see them on the Sun (remember NEVER look directly at the Sun), but in fact they can be enormous! This composite image shows just how big sunspots can be, to scale with an image of Earth. Sunspots can be as big, or bigger, than Earth. The <a href="/sun/activity/sunspot_history.html&edu=elem&dev=1/earth/Atmosphere/moons/triton_atmosphere.html">earliest written record of a sunspot observation</a> was made by Chinese astronomers around 800 B.C.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of Windows to the Universe using images from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (sunspot image) and NASA (Earth image).</em></small></p>

Explore Monitoring and Modeling Space Weather

Instruments & Techniques for Space Weather Measurements

Scientists use a broad array of techniques and instruments to make the measurements needed ...Read more

How do Satellites & Spacecraft Monitor Space Weather?

Observations by Earth-orbiting satellites and other spacecraft have revolutionized our understanding ...Read more

Ground-based Observations of Space Weather

Some observations of space weather phenomena are made by spacecraft. Other observations are ...Read more

Modeling Space Weather

Scientists who study space weather make extensive use of computer models to make sense of complex ...Read more

Metrics & Indices that Describe Space Weather

Meteorologists measure quantities like wind speed, rainfall amounts, and temperature. They ...Read more

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Earth and Space Science Concept of the Day

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Moho
xMoho : The boundary between the crust and the mantle in the earth. This is a depth where seismic waves change velocity and there is also a change in chemical composition. Also termed the Mohorovicic' discontinuity after the Croatian seismologist Andrija Moh

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Research Highlights

Oldest Earth Mantle Reservoir Discovered

Researchers have found a primitive Earth mantle reservoir on Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. Geologist Matthew Jackson and his colleagues from a multi-institution collaboration report the finding--the...Read more


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