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Keeping track of aurora forecasts, notifications, and community reports.

Did you see the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) visibility from last week if you were on that area? If you missed it and want to know more then there are some places where you can get reliable information: 1. Aurora Forecast Websites: Websites like the Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC), Aurora Service, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute provide forecasts and updates on Aurora Borealis activity and visibility in different regions. 2. Mobile Apps: There are several mobile apps available for both iOS and Android devices that offer real-time updates, notifications, and forecasts for the Northern Lights. Examples include My Aurora Forecast & Alerts, Aurora Alerts, and Aurora Watch. 3. Social Media: Platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook have dedicated Aurora Borealis enthusiast groups, pages, and accounts that share updates, photos, and sightings. Following these accounts can keep you informed about recent Northern Lights activity. 4. Astronomy

What ionized the universe?

The sparsely distributed hot gas that exists in the space between galaxies, the intergalactic medium, is ionized. The question is, how? Astronomers know that once the early universe expanded and cooled enough, hydrogen (its main constituent) recombined into neutral atoms. Then, once newly formed massive stars began to shine in the so-called "era of reionization," their extreme ultraviolet radiation presumably ionized the gas in processes that continue today. One of the key steps, however, is not well understood, namely the extent to which the stellar ionizing radiation escapes from the galaxies into the IGM. Only if the fraction escaping was high enough during the era of reionization could starlight have done the job, otherwise some other significant source of ionizing radiation is required. That might imply the existence of an important population of more exotic objects like faint quasars, X-ray binary stars, or perhaps even decaying/annihilating particles.

from Astronomy News - Space News, Exploration News, Earth Science News, Earth Science https://ift.tt/2CwQs9V

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