Huge Holes Found in Earth's Magnetic Shield

18 sequences of time-lapse photography reveal our electrifying planet

(NEWSER) - Remember the last 'round-the-world trip we recommended? This one might be even better. It's 18 sequences of time-lapse photography (the first two over the US) taken 240 miles above the earth by the International Space Station and edited by designer Michael König . They make our home look positively electrifying. Earth shimmers with light nearly nonstop in the photos, from the artificial lights of cities to lightning to the Aurora Borealis and the Aurora Australis. Click here for the list of fly-over sites. More»

But Asteroid 2010 SO16 has an unusual 'horseshoe' orbit

(NEWSER) - Earth has a new follower: Asteroid 2010 SO16, which has joined the Earth's path around the sun and could follow it for the next 120,000 to 1 million years, scientists say. But there's one odd thing about the asteroid, which just so happens to be the largest space rock discovered so close to Earth: It orbits the sun in a horseshoe pattern. More»

Cycle's low point 'going on and on and on'

(NEWSER) - The Northern lights are rarer now than they have been for at least a century, but some spectacular light shows are probably on the way, researchers say. The phenomenon, triggered by solar winds, usually follows an 11-year cycle, rising quickly to a maximum before tapering off to a minimum. But researchers say the minimum has been "going on and on and on" since 2008, the Telegraph reports. More»

Aurora borealis may be visible in northern US tonight

(NEWSER) - Thanks to a plasma eruption that roiled the surface of the sun, residents of the northern US and Canada may be able to enjoy a spectacular show tonight—the Northern Lights. "This eruption is directed right at us, and is expected to get here early in the day on August 4th," an astrophysicist in Cambridge, Mass., tells CNN . "It's the first major Earth-directed eruption in quite some time." More»

(NEWSER) - The sun may be heading for one of its dimmest periods in history, but that doesn't mean the big star is joining the battle against global warming, according to scientists. The sun hit a 100-year low in sunspot activity last year, reports the Telegraph. More»