5 April 2019 |  SpaceWeather.com  | 

Friday night (April 5th) in Norway, researchers at the Andøya Space Center launched two sounding rockets into a minor geomagnetic storm. The results were out of this world. Aurora tour guide Kim Hartviksen photographed glowing blobs of blue and purple caused by the rockets dumping chemical powders into the storm:

Photo credit: Kim Hartviksen

The twin rockets deployed two chemical tracers: trimethyl aluminum (TMA) and a barium/strontium mixture. These mixtures create colorful clouds that allow researchers to visually track the flow of neutral and charged particles, respectively. According to NASA, which funded the mission, the chemicals pose no hazard to residents in the region.

Link To Full Article

NOAA Space Weather

NASA Meteoroid Environment Office

Fact Check: Toxicity of Aluminum, Sulfur Dioxide, Barium, & Strontium

 EVIDENCE ON THE DEVELOPMENTAL AND REPRODUCTIVE TOXICITY OF Sulfur Dioxide / Human Exposure to Aluminum

TOXICITY OF CLOUD SEEDING AEROSOLS

Thank you to KS for sharing this article with us @ ZG!