Not Fully Understood Disturbance Rippled Through Earth's Magnetic Field

For reasons not fully understood by forecasters, a disturbance rippled through Earth's magnetic field on Feb. 14th. Perhaps it was Cupid's arrow. The impact sparked some sweet lights around the Arctic Circle: "On several occasions the sky was full of auroras from horizon to horizon," says photographer and aurora tour guide Chad Blakley of Abisko National Park, Sweden. "We had many happy couples celebrating with us tonight. Most of our guests agreed that it was the best Valentine's day that they had ever shared together."

There has been some speculation that the display was caused by a CME, launched from the sun on Feb. 10th and reaching Earth on Feb. 14th. However, there is no clear signature of a CME impact in local solar wind data.

..."The presence of a nearby cloud might also affect the physical conditions inside the solar system...

...an encounter with a cloud might not only affect nuetrino flux release from the Sun but also have some drastic influence on the terrestrial climate in the next 10,000 years...

...The observations and analyses mentioned here suggest the presence of a very close interstellar cloud which should encounter the solar system in the "near" future. However, the complexity of the interstellar medium is not completely understood, it would not be surprising if the situation is far more complicated than indicated in this paper."

Quote from the 1978 article, "Their strong magnetic fields could compress the heliosphere even more than it is compressed now," according to NASA. "Additional compression could allow more cosmic rays to reach the inner solar system, possibly affecting terrestrial climate and the ability of astronauts to travel safely through space."

The cloud is called the "Local Fluff." It's about 30 light-years wide and holds a wispy mix of hydrogen and helium atoms, according to a NASA statement released today. Stars that exploded nearby, about 10 million years ago, should have crushed the Fluff or blown it away.