-- News And Information About Meteor Showers ...

Solar wind speed: 380.6 km/sec density: 3.39 protons/cm3 more data: ACE, DSCOVR Updated: Today at 0525 UT
X-ray Solar Flares 6-hr max: C2 0030 UT Mar03 24-hr: C2 0030 UT Mar03 explanation | more data Updated: Today at: 0530 UT
Daily Sun: 02 Mar 26 Expand: labels | no labels All of these sunspots have stable (or decaying) magnetic fields that pose little threat for strong solar flares. Credit: NASA/SDO Sunspot number: 82 What is the sunspot number? Updated 02 Mar 2026
Current Auroral Oval:
Switch to: Europe, USA, New Zealand, Antarctica Credit: NOAA/Ovation
Planetary K-index Now: Kp= 1.00 quiet 24-hr max: Kp= 1.67 quiet explanation | more data
Interplanetary Mag. Field Btotal: 8.41 nT Bz: 3.23 nT north more data: ACE, DSCOVR Updated: Today at 0526 UT
Coronal Holes: 02 Mar 26
There are no equatorial coronal holes on the Earthside of the sun. Credit: NASA/SDO | more data

Spotless Days Current Stretch: 0 days 2026 total: 3 days (5%) 2025 total: 0 days (0%) 2024 total: 0 days (0%) 2023 total: 0 days (0%) 2022 total: 1 day (<1%) 2021 total: 64 days (18%) 2020 total: 208 days (57%) 2019 total: 281 days (77%) 2018 total: 221 days (61%) 2017 total: 104 days (28%) 2016 total: 32 days (9%) 2015 total: 0 days (0%) 2014 total: 1 day (<1%) 2013 total: 0 days (0%) 2012 total: 0 days (0%) 2011 total: 2 days (<1%) 2010 total: 51 days (14%) 2009 total: 260 days (71%) 2008 total: 268 days (73%) 2007 total: 152 days (42%) 2006 total: 70 days (19%) Updated 02 Mar 2026Thermosphere Climate Index today: 20.75x1010 W Warm Max: 49.4x1010 W Hot (10/1957) Min: 2.05x1010 W Cold (02/2009) explanation | more data: gfx, txt Updated 02 Mar 2026

The Radio Sun 10.7 cm flux: 147 sfu explanation | more data Updated 02 Mar 2026

Cosmic Rays Solar Cycle 25 is near its peak, and this is reflected in the number of cosmic rays entering Earth's atmosphere. Neutron counts from the University of Oulu's Sodankyla Geophysical Observatory show that cosmic rays reaching Earth are slowly declining--a result of the yin-yang relationship between the solar cycle and cosmic rays. Oulu Neutron Counts Percentages of the Space Age average: today: -8.6% Low 48-hr change: +0.4% Max: +11.7% Very High (12/2009) Min: -32.1% Very Low (06/1991) explanation |more data Updated 01 Mar 2026 @ 0700 UT

SPACE WEATHER NOAA Forecasts
Updated at: 2026 Mar 02 2200 UTC
FLARE 0-24 hr 24-48 hr
CLASS M 30 % 30 %
CLASS X 05 % 05 %
Geomagnetic Storms: Probabilities for significant disturbances in Earth's magnetic field are given for three activity levels: active, minor storm, severe storm
Updated at: 2026 Mar 02 2200 UTC
Mid-latitudes
0-24 hr 24-48 hr
ACTIVE 30 % 30 %
MINOR 05 % 05 %
SEVERE 01 % 01 %
High latitudes
0-24 hr 24-48 hr
ACTIVE 15 % 15 %
MINOR 30 % 30 %
SEVERE 35 % 35 %
Tuesday, Mar. 3, 2026
What's up in space

This is an AI Free Zone: Text created by Large Language Models is spreading across the Internet. It's well-written, but frequently inaccurate. If you find a mistake on Spaceweather.com, rest assured it was made by a real human being.

SUNSPOTS ARE BACK: After 3 days of blank suns last week, solar activity has returned to normal with multiple sunspot groups crossing the solar disk. Solar Cycle 25 has some life left, after all. NOAA forecasters estimate a 25% chance of M-class flares and a 5% chance of X-flares on March 2nd and 3rd. Solar flare alerts: SMS Text

WHEN TO SEE THE LUNAR ECLIPSE: Wide awake at 3:00 a.m.? Studies show that sleep deprivation is epidemic. On the bright side, it's the perfect time to see tonight's total eclipse of the Moon. In the USA, totality is underway before sunrise on Tuesday, March 3rd, around 3 o'clock Pacific Time:

More Time Zones: EST, CST, MST, PST, UTC.

What you see in that graphic is the full Moon turning red as it passes through the shadow of our planet. Earth's shadow is reddened by every sunset and sunrise in the world while the eclipse is in progress--hence the red color of the Moon. A NASA video explains it. Totality lasts for about an hour.

This eclipse will be visible in the Americas, the Pacific Ocean, Australia and much of Asia: visibility map. While people in the Americas can see the eclipse before sunrise on Tuesday, observers across Pacific will see it on Tuesday evening instead--not so hard to wake up!

If you are in the eclipse zone, enjoy the show and submit your photos here.

Realtime Eclipse Photo Gallery Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter

THE RAINBOW ROSE FROM SPACE: This is no ordinary rose. It shimmers with all the colors of the rainbow, and it has been to the edge of space:

You can have it for $127.95. The rainbow rose flew through the stratosphere on Jan. 24th carried by an Earth to Sky Calculus cosmic ray research balloon. The artificial bloom comes with a greeting card showing the rose in flight, and telling the story of its journey to the top of Earth's atmosphere. It makes a great birthday, anniversary, or (coming soon!) Mother's Day gift.

Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store All sales support hands-on STEM education

Realtime Aurora Photo Gallery Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter

Realtime Space Weather Photo Gallery Free: Spaceweather.com Newsletter

All Sky Fireball Network
Every night, a network of NASA all-sky cameras scans the skies above the United States for meteoritic fireballs. Automated software maintained by NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office calculates their orbits, velocity, penetration depth in Earth's atmosphere and many other characteristics. Daily results are presented here on Spaceweather.com.

On March 01, 2026, the network reported 6 fireballs. (6 sporadics)

In this diagram of the inner solar system, all of the fireball orbits intersect at a single point--Earth. The orbits are color-coded by velocity, from slow (red) to fast (blue). [Larger image] [movies]

Near Earth Asteroids
Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are space rocks larger than approximately 100m that can come closer to Earth than 0.05 AU. None of the known PHAs is on a collision course with our planet, although astronomers are finding new ones all the time.
On March 3, 2026 there were 2349 potentially hazardous asteroids.
Recent & Upcoming Earth-asteroid encounters:
Asteroid Date(UT) Miss Distance Velocity (km/s) Diameter (m)
2026 DK8 2026-Feb-25 9.1 LD 7.7 19
2026 DD1 2026-Feb-25 3.9 LD 7.6 9
2026 DW11 2026-Feb-25 4.6 LD 14.2 22
2026 DD6 2026-Feb-25 2.6 LD 15.2 7
2026 DC7 2026-Feb-25 2.9 LD 11.8 10
2026 DS8 2026-Feb-26 13.3 LD 17.5 18
2026 DV7 2026-Feb-26 5.9 LD 11.3 14
2026 DX14 2026-Feb-26 10.3 LD 29.7 54
2026 CU1 2026-Feb-26 3.2 LD 8.4 42
2026 DO10 2026-Feb-27 6.6 LD 9.2 15
2026 DF14 2026-Feb-27 0.7 LD 15.4 22
2026 DP6 2026-Feb-27 4 LD 10.7 12
2011 CL50 2026-Feb-27 13.4 LD 4.5 12
2026 DC14 2026-Feb-27 5.7 LD 8.3 6
2026 CR4 2026-Feb-27 10.6 LD 17.3 54
2020 FV4 2026-Feb-27 16.3 LD 8.7 30
2026 EA 2026-Feb-28 14.5 LD 7.6 68
2026 DG1 2026-Feb-28 7.2 LD 12.3 21
2007 DG8 2026-Feb-28 10 LD 9.9 32
2026 DO11 2026-Feb-28 9.5 LD 12.1 21
2026 DS5 2026-Mar-01 6 LD 17.6 19
2026 DR11 2026-Mar-01 1.4 LD 5.3 8
2026 DM10 2026-Mar-01 10.8 LD 17.7 24
2026 DT8 2026-Mar-02 12.3 LD 5.2 13
2011 EH17 2026-Mar-02 15.8 LD 16.5 39
2026 DM14 2026-Mar-02 10.2 LD 13.8 34
2026 DX6 2026-Mar-02 2 LD 6.7 7
2026 DQ10 2026-Mar-03 4 LD 13.1 25
2026 DR14 2026-Mar-03 16.6 LD 8.4 66
2026 CB3 2026-Mar-03 13.9 LD 8.9 33
2026 CX4 2026-Mar-03 7.6 LD 12.3 43
2026 CD1 2026-Mar-03 6.4 LD 10.9 61
2026 DK4 2026-Mar-03 7.8 LD 8.5 23
2026 DZ7 2026-Mar-04 15.2 LD 10.9 39
2026 DA1 2026-Mar-04 12.9 LD 1.9 17
2026 DQ8 2026-Mar-04 3.9 LD 8.6 16
2026 DE14 2026-Mar-04 19 LD 5.2 23
2026 DM15 2026-Mar-06 12.3 LD 8 99
2021 ER 2026-Mar-06 6.3 LD 4 14
2017 BM123 2026-Mar-06 19.9 LD 7.2 61
2026 DW14 2026-Mar-07 12.5 LD 12 19
2026 DG7 2026-Mar-07 9.4 LD 16 30
2012 DF31 2026-Mar-08 13.4 LD 16 43
2026 DM8 2026-Mar-08 15.7 LD 15.8 34
2026 DY7 2026-Mar-08 9.1 LD 7.7 21
2026 DH11 2026-Mar-09 3.3 LD 13 18
2026 DQ11 2026-Mar-09 13 LD 10.3 41
2020 GE 2026-Mar-09 16.1 LD 1.3 8
2026 DE7 2026-Mar-09 18.9 LD 9.5 41
2025 EK4 2026-Mar-10 14.7 LD 10 55
2021 BW1 2026-Mar-10 14.6 LD 4.1 18
2023 ET2 2026-Mar-11 7.8 LD 12.7 3
2026 CC3 2026-Mar-11 4.1 LD 1.7 12
2025 DP3 2026-Mar-11 9.4 LD 9.1 27
2007 EG 2026-Mar-15 4.5 LD 7.8 44
2026 CR3 2026-Mar-16 19.5 LD 9.1 79
2015 VO142 2026-Mar-17 2.7 LD 3.1 6
2026 DP10 2026-Mar-17 10.5 LD 10.8 51
2021 FS 2026-Mar-18 18.2 LD 7.2 9
2026 DP15 2026-Mar-19 5.3 LD 7.7 25
2010 RA91 2026-Mar-22 4.7 LD 9.9 68
2022 FY 2026-Mar-24 10.1 LD 6.5 9
2025 SP20 2026-Mar-25 18.8 LD 11 12
2025 GL 2026-Apr-03 9.8 LD 6.4 5
2019 FQ1 2026-Apr-03 9.6 LD 10.1 13
2023 DZ2 2026-Apr-04 2.6 LD 7.2 50
2021 GN6 2026-Apr-06 5.8 LD 7 14
2024 TB7 2026-Apr-07 4.9 LD 7.5 5
2002 TB70 2026-Apr-07 13.4 LD 9.2 162
2022 GE2 2026-Apr-10 12 LD 9.2 15
2023 HB4 2026-Apr-12 16.8 LD 8.7 15
2013 GM3 2026-Apr-14 0.7 LD 7.4 20
2026 AC4 2026-Apr-20 10.7 LD 1.2 21
2022 UG2 2026-Apr-20 16.3 LD 10.3 13
2025 HQ4 2026-Apr-21 16.4 LD 12.5 22
2026 BK2 2026-Apr-22 10 LD 8.1 211
2022 UU8 2026-Apr-25 8.7 LD 4 9
Notes: LD means "Lunar Distance." 1 LD = 384,401 km, the distance between Earth and the Moon. 1 LD also equals 0.00256 AU.
Cosmic Rays in the Atmosphere

SPACE WEATHER BALLOON DATA: Almost once a week, Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus fly space weather balloons to the stratosphere over California. These balloons are equipped with sensors that detect secondary cosmic rays, a form of radiation from space that can penetrate all the way down to Earth's surface. Our monitoring program has been underway without interruption for 10 years, resulting in a unique dataset of in situ atmospheric measurements.

Latest results (Nov. 2024): Atmospheric radiation is sharply decreasing in 2024. Our latest measurements in November registered a 10-year low:

What's going on? Ironically, the radiation drop is caused by increasing solar activity. Solar Cycle 25 has roared to life faster than forecasters expected. The sun's strengthening and increasingly tangled magnetic field repels cosmic rays from deep space. In addition, solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs) sweep aside cosmic rays, causing sharp reductions called "Forbush Decreases." The two effects blend together to bring daily radiation levels down.

.Who cares? Cosmic rays are a surprisingly "down to Earth" form of space weather. They can alter the chemistry of the atmosphere, trigger lightning, and penetrate commercial airplanes. According to a study from the Harvard T.H. Chan school of public health, crews of aircraft have higher rates of cancer than the general population. The researchers listed cosmic rays, irregular sleep habits, and chemical contaminants as leading risk factors. A number of controversial studies (#1, #2, #3, #4) go even further, linking cosmic rays with cardiac arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death.

Technical notes: The radiation sensors onboard our helium balloons detect X-rays and gamma-rays in the energy range 10 keV to 20 MeV. These energies span the range of medical X-ray machines and airport security scanners.

Data points in the graph labeled "Stratospheric Radiation" correspond to the peak of the Regener-Pfotzer maximum, which lies about 67,000 feet above central California. When cosmic rays crash into Earth's atmosphere, they produce a spray of secondary particles that is most intense at the entrance to the stratosphere. Physicists Eric Regener and Georg Pfotzer discovered the maximum using balloons in the 1930s and it is what we are measuring today.

Essential web links
NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center
The official U.S. government space weather bureau
Atmospheric Optics
The first place to look for information about sundogs, pillars, rainbows and related phenomena.
Solar Dynamics Observatory
Researchers call it a "Hubble for the sun." SDO is the most advanced solar observatory ever.
STEREO
3D views of the sun from NASA's Solar and Terrestrial Relations Observatory
Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
Realtime and archival images of the Sun from SOHO.
SolarMonitor.org
information about sunspots based on the latest NOAA/USAF Active Region Summary
Starlink Satellite Statistics
current counts of failed and deployed Starlink satellites from Jonathan's Space Page. See also, all satellite statistics.
The Aerospace Corporation
Authoritative predictions of space junk and satellite re-entries
Daily Sunspot Summaries
from the NOAA Space Environment Center
NOAA 27-Day Space Weather Forecasts
fun to read, but should be taken with a grain of salt! Forecasts looking ahead more than a few days are often wrong.
Aurora 30 min forecast
from the NOAA Space Environment Center
Live Aurora Webcam
from Lights over Lapland
Heliophysics
the underlying science of space weather

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NASA Near Earth Asteroid Home Page
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