October's solar blast, seen from the side

Speaking of solar storms causing gorgeous auroral displays... In late October, a coronal mass ejection (CME) -- a violent explosion of subatomic particles erupting from the Sun at high speeds -- blasted away from our star, impacting the Earth, and setting off aurorae seen as far south as Arkansas. It was cloudy here in Boulder, but from space, the view is always clear. NASA's STEREO spacecraft are twin machines, one ahead of the Earth, one behind, both staring at the Sun 24/7. They are currently roughly 100° around the Earth's orbit, so they are essentially seeing the Sun "from the side". STEREO A, ahead of the Earth in its orbit, captured images of the Sun during October's solar hissy fit, and got dramatic footage of the explosion: Yegads. [Make sure you click the HD button to see this in all its glory.] The Earth is off to the left, well ...