SEVERE GEOMAGNETIC STORM WATCH: A CME is heading straight for Earth–see below. NASA and NOAA models agree that it will strike Earth on June 1st. The impact could spark a severe (G4-class) geomagnetic storm with auroras visible across Europe and many US states. This won’t be as big as the famous May 2024 storm, but it could be one of the bigger events of Solar Cycle 25 if a severe storm materializes. CME impact alerts:SMS Text
MAJOR SOLAR FLARE AND HALO CME: Big old sunspot 4100 finally exploded–and it was a doozy. On May 31st at 00:05 UTC, Earth-orbiting satellites detected an M8.2-class solar flare. The explosion lasted more than 3 hours:
A long-duration M8.2-class solar flare recorded by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory
Although the flare was not technically X-class, it was close. Moreover, it was a slow explosion with lots of power “under the curve.” The blast was able to lift a massive CME out of the sun’s atmosphere.
Indeed, shortly after the flare, SOHO coronagraphs recorded a bright halo CME heading directly for our planet:
This is a very fast-moving CME. Type II radio emissions from shock waves within the cloud suggest it is traveling 1,938 km/s or 4.3 million mph. When it strikes Earth, the CME could spark severe geomagnetic storms with auroras at mid- to low latitudes. Stay tuned! CME impact alerts:SMS Text
MonSFFA will be active during the coming summer months; here’s what’s on our agenda:
KNIGHTS IN OLD MONTREAL
2025 MonSFFA Field Trip – Saturday, June 14
The club will first embark upon a field trip, set for Saturday, June 14, 2025; mark that date in your calendars!
We will be making our way to Old Montréal to take in the newly opened exhibition, “Knights.” We’ll be visiting our city’s “Archaeology and History Complex,” the Pointe-à-Callière museum, host of this exhibition.
MonFFen to Meet-Up at Museum
Our plan is to meet in the museum’s main entrance lobby at 1:00PM on Saturday, June 14 (don’t be late!) and enter together as a group at about 1:30PM. As always, each individual is responsible for their own entrance fee and any other expenses incurred, such as lunch or gift shop purchases. For any interested, we will make our way to a nearby restaurant after our visit to enjoy a post-field trip dinner.
Adult admission charge is $29, with various discounts available for seniors, students, etc.
Information on the Exhibition
Genre fans are, of course, familiar with medieval knights, who feature in many an epic fantasy tale. The museum invites us to “Delve into the heart of history with ‘Knights,’ a fascinating exhibition that stirs up the spirit of chivalry. From the battlefield to the royal court, this exhibition explores the various aspects of the life of knights.” We are offered a full exploration of the world of knights, including “their training, their place in society, and their code of honour.” Exquisite examples of European weaponry and armour, sourced from Italy’s prestigious Museo Stibbert, are among the over 250 pieces on display, showcasing the skill of the period’s craftsmen.
Images, Knights Exhibition, Pointe-à-Callière Museum
Note that there are also other exhibits of interest at Pointe-à-Callière, including studies of Montreal’s founding and past, the history of the Dow Brewery, and an immersive and interactive family exhibition on pirates and privateers.
Getting to the Museum
The nearest Metro station is Place-d’Armes; from there, it’s a 10 minute walk to the museum via rue Saint-François-Xavier. Also, the 50 bus, running along rue de-la-Commune, stops at the museum. Paid parking is available in the area, primarily in the Old Port.
Museum’s Address and Contact Information
The museum’s address is: 350 Place Royale, Old Montreal, QC, H2Y 3Y5
MonSFFA’s 2025 Barbecue-in-the-Park – Sunday, July 13
Our annual Barbecue-in-the-Park is scheduled, this year, for Sunday, July 13. MonSFFen and their families, as well as friends of the club, are invited to gather at about 10:30AM in Parc Maisonneuve on that date to enjoy a day of fresh air, sunshine, and fun with friends!
Sprawling Parc Maisonneuve, easily accessible by Metro (Viau, Pie-IX) or bus, is located in the city’s East End, adjacent the Botanical Gardens and the Olympic Stadium. Parking is available on site, or on nearby streets.
Our intention is to claim a picnic spot along one of the park’s lines of trees, not too far from the Chalet (washrooms) and parking lot; our “Preferred Picnic Area” is indicated on the map (below). Look for us within roughly that area.
Bring your own refreshments, snacks, and any meats you may wish to barbecue; MonSFFA will provide a grill. Should inclement weather scuttle plans, our rain date is Sunday, July 20, same Bat-time, same Bat-place.
As a handy reminder, download to your phone or print out to post on your fridge these flyers touting the club’s field trip and barbecue: 2025SummerActivitiesPromoFlyer(PDF)
AUGUST AFTERNOON OF “FANCRAFT”
“Fancrafting” Workshops – Saturday, August 16
Finally, we’ll wrap up this summer’s MonSFFActivities on August 16, returning to the club’s usual Nouvel Hotel meeting locale for the revival of an old, pre-pandemic tradition of MonSFFA’s, that of holding a number of “fancrafting” workshops throughout the course of the afternoon’s meeting. These hands-on demonstrations of SF/F-themed crafting projects, which we have dubbed “fancrafting,” will run concurrently, allowing folk to learn about and try their hand at each during the afternoon.
In past workshops we have learned how to fold sci-fi origami, for instance, tried our collective hand at stop-motion animation, realistically painted and weathered dollar-store toy guns and plastic knives for use as cosplay props, and “scratchbuilt” model spaceships from assorted household odds and ends.
Our workshops are hosted from among our own and allow all to exercise their innate creativity. This year, we’ll learn how to fashion beautifully decorative magic wands (of particular interest to those Hogwarts hopefuls among us!), explore “papercraft” model building, try our hand at making sci-fi hand puppets (for kids of all ages!), and more!
We tend to associate dinosaurs with ground-shaking roars, but the latest research shows that this is probably mistaken.
You’d feel it more than hear it – a deep, visceral throb, emerging from somewhere beyond the thick foliage. Like the rumble of a foghorn, it would thrum in your ribcage and bristle the hairs on your neck. In the dense forests of the Cretaceous period, it would have been terrifying.
We have few clues for what noises dinosaurs might have made while they ruled the Earth before being killed off 66 million years ago. The remarkable stony remains uncovered by palaeontologists offer evidence of the physical prowess of these creatures, but not a great deal about how they interacted and communicated. Sound doesn’t fossilise, of course.
From what we know about animal behaviour, however, dinosaurs were almost certainly not silent.
Now with the help of new, rare fossils and advanced analysis techniques, scientists are starting to piece together some of the clues about how dinosaurs might have sounded.
Even without a larynx or voice box, P. tubicen may have still been able to produce sounds using its distinctive headcrest (Credit: Tom Williamson)
Hi, I received a notice from Sandra Phillips concerning a sale of collectibles. A few of the items might interest MonSFFA members and friends. They will be sold at the citywide DDO Yard sale next weekend, May 24 &25.–Cathy
This is Sandra Phillips from Smart Shopping Montreal. I had your contact for collectibles and thought that perhaps I should reach out to you.. I have a large collection which I am ready to part with.
Many vintage (1970’s with wooden people) Fisher Price Toys (boat, airport, town, school, school bus, musical instruments in case, etc ) and a few collectible toys from 70′ & 80’s or $50’s ones.
Three vintage kids’ record players. Do you know of anyone in town that might want to buy them?
ebay prices:
– Vintage Jaymar Upright Miniature Piano Pat 2641135 – $124
– – Merrythought from England Walking/Push toy plush dog by Milestone Auctions was $200 sold for $100
– Happy Toy finger magic 7.99 $22 in original round container box
– 50’s Richmond spelling board letters numbers circa 1950’s in fair shape $20-$36
Disney
Walt Disney World Good neighbor hotel sign (hotel never built hotel but sign was ordered) pin is $24.95 sign”?
Minnie Mouse bank $19.99 for both her and Mickey
Hat:: Walt Disney World Mickey Mouse around 1971 felt kid size about $10
Posters
home alone poster $20
darth vader signed poster $150 or more plus ship
etc.
Pins (over 100) :
lots of political ones
like Nixon gold pin $11.98
Beatles $35
Michael Jackson before he fixed his face
Postcards going back to 1940’s – over 100
Star Trek books (about 20) , ebay at least $10= $75 each, Dungeons and Dragons one $35
Fast food giveaway toys from McDonald’s etc (one says $99 on ebay)
Few untouched beanie babies,
ETC
If you are not interested, do you have any idea of who I should send this to? Getting ready to sell all at the citywide DDO Yard sale next weekend, May 24 &25.
This post is to announce that MonSFFA’s members have chosen a new exhibition on knights and their times as our 2025 club field trip. Mark Saturday, June 14 in your calendars!
Reviewing some half-dozen options presented at MonSFFA’s recent May meeting, the subject of knights proved most popular and the exhibition garnered overwhelming support as this year’s field trip. This exhibition opens at Old Montreal’s Pointe-à-Callière museum, Montréal’s “Archaeology and History Complex.” The standard adult admission charge is $29, with various discounts available for seniors, students, etc.
Getting to the Museum
The nearest Metro station is Place-d’Armes; from there, it’s a 10 minute walk to the museum via rue Saint-Francois-Xavier. Also, the 50 bus, running along rue de-la-Commune, stops at the museum. Paid parking is available in the area, primarily in the Old Port.
MonFFen to Meet-Up at Museum
The date we have selected for our field trip is Saturday, June 14. Our plan is to meet in the museum’s main entrance lobby at 1:00PM (don’t be late!) and enter together at about 1:30PM. As always, each individual is responsible for their own entrance fee and any other expenses incurred, such as lunch or gift shop purchases. For any interested, we will make our way to a nearby restaurant after our visit to enjoy a post-field trip dinner.
Information on the Exhibition
“Delve into the heart of history with ‘Knights,’ a fascinating exhibition that stirs up the spirit of chivalry. From the battlefield to the royal court, this exhibition explores the various aspects of the life of knights,” reads the museum’s promotional text. The world of knights is fully explored, including “their training, their place in society, and their code of honour.” Exquisite examples of European weaponry and armour, sourced from Italy’s prestigious Museo Stibbert, are among the over 250 pieces on display, showcasing the skill of the period’s craftsmen.
Note that there are also other exhibits of interest at Pointe-à-Callière, including studies of Montreal’s founding and past, the history of the iconic Dow Brewery, and an immersive and interactive family exhibition on pirates and privateers.
Pointe-à-Callière museum, Old Montreal
Museum’s Address and Contact Information
Address: 350 Place Royale, Old Montreal, QC, H2Y 3Y5
We thank Joe Aspler and Keith Braithwaite for their efforts on this afternoon’s programming, and tip our hat to all of our contributing participants, along with everyone who helped to plan and run today’s meeting. Finally, of course, we thank all of you who joined us, both physically in the meeting hall and here on ZOOM; don’t forget to comment on today’s get-together (www.MonSFFA.ca).
6) NEXT MONTH’S EVENT:
During the coming couple months, the club will hold events outside of our regular Nouvel Hotel meetings. We will first embark upon a field trip next month, on Saturday, June 14, gathering at the appointed time and place, which were decided upon during the course of today’s meeting, details to be posted shortly, here on our Website—watch this space! We invite all MonSFFen, their families and friends to join us on our field trip.
7) SIGN-OFF
Thank you all for taking part today. We appreciate the enthusiastic involvement of our members, and we hope to see you all again next month on the field trip! Until that day, happy travels and keep well!
Welcome to MonSFFA’s May 2025 meeting! The days are warming, the rains are falling, the are birds singing, the flowers, pushing through the earth, sunward, and the last of the Tempos have come down in neighbourhoods across the city: true signs of Spring!
Take note that we have again been moved into the “Faubourg” room by the hotel, in lieu of our usual “Maisonneuve” room; the Faubourg is just down the hall from the Maisonneuve.
As always, our out-of-town members can take part in today’s meeting via ZOOM from the comfort of their own homes. So do join us for a few hours of sci-fi fun! Today’s proceedings will be getting underway shortly.
To join our ZOOM-chat and take part this afternoon, see the instructions, immediately below (Item 2), to join in and participate online.
Our programming agenda begins at 1:00PM; the meeting will conclude at 5:00PM. This opening post has gone up 30 minutes before the meeting’s start time to allow folk to gather online at their leisure. A closing post will go up at 5:00PM to officially thank today’s presenters/discussion moderators, and to publish the date of the next MonSFFA event.
2) JOIN THIS AFTERNOON’S VIDEO-CHAT ON ZOOM!
To take part in this afternoon’s meeting online, join our ZOOM video-chat, which will run throughout the next few hours. Simply click here and follow the prompts: This Afternoon’s MonSFFA Meeting on ZOOM
If you’re not fully equipped to ZOOM, you can also take part by phone (voice only); in the Montreal area, the toll-free number to call is: 1-438-809-7799. From out of town? No problem; find your ZOOM call-in number here: Call-In Numbers
Also, have this information on hand as you may be asked to enter it:
Meeting ID: 848 5184 6478
Passcode: 603289
3) MEETING THEME FOR MAY 2025
Meeting Theme: We will be discussing, during the course of today’s meeting, our annual club field trip, upcoming in June! We welcome your suggestions as to which museum, exhibition, or interesting locale to visit this year.
4) THIS AFTERNOON’S AGENDA
Today’s programming agenda is as follows:
1:00PM – Section 31 (Game)
How well do you know your sci-fi spaceships, aircraft, and vehicles? As a Section 31 agent, you will be required to covertly gather information on various of these as potential targets, and this afternoon, we will test your ability to correctly identify a few!
2:00PM – The Cartoons of Tom Gauld: SF, Fantasy, Literature, and Commentary. And books!
We examine the art and humour of prolific cartoonist Tom Gauld, whose work covers a wide range: science, science fiction, fantasy, role-playing games, classic literature, politics, and more. Gauld happily combines different genres in a single cartoon. Vampire tropes… and modern politics; classic literature…and science fiction; fantasy…and the reality of television. Not only does Gauld love books, he also loves booklovers, and publishes in major newspapers and magazines, including The Guardian, The New Scientist, The New York Times, and The New Yorker.
3:30PM – Break
Club business, announcements, and raffle.
3:45PM – Discussion and Planning for Club’s Summer Schedule—Field Trip, Summer Barbecue-in-the-Park, August “Fancraft” Workshop
We will showcase and discuss potential destinations for our annual club field trip, upcoming on June 14! Welcome from the membership are suggestions as to which museum, exhibition, or interesting locale to visit this year. Further, we’ll lay out our plans for the club’s annual Barbecue-in-the-Park on Sunday, July 13, and work out the details of our planned “fancraft” workshop/meeting on August 16.
4:30PM – Final Thoughts
We close the afternoon with final thoughts, questions, and commentary on today’s topics, or other subjects members may have to briefly share with the group. Your feedback, dear members, is always welcome!
5:00PM – End of Meeting
Please Note: While we strive to keep on schedule, we do, sometimes, fall behind a little, or find ourselves having to reshuffle the order of items on the agenda for one reason or another, or reschedule planned presentations/discussions. Therefore, please understand that all programming is subject to change!
The meeting officially begins at 1:00PM! Thanks for joining us today, and enjoy the afternoon!
MonSFFA’s next meeting is scheduled to take place tomorrow afternoon, Saturday, May 10, from 1:00PM to 5:00PM!
We will gather at our usual downtown meeting locale, Le Nouvel Hotel, 1740 René-Lévesque Ouest (corner St-Mathieu).
Out-of-towners, as always, may join our ZOOM-chat and take part in the meeting from the comfort of home!
On the Agenda:
The Cartoons of Tom Gauld: SF, Fantasy, Literature, and Commentary. And Books!
We examine the art and humour of prolific cartoonist Tom Gauld, whose work covers a wide range: science, science fiction, fantasy, role-playing games, classic literature, politics, and more. Gauld happily combines different genres in a single cartoon. Vampire tropes… and modern politics; classic literature…and science fiction; fantasy…and the reality of television. Not only does Gauld love books, he also loves booklovers, and publishes in major newspapers and magazines, including The Guardian, The New Scientist, The New York Times, and The New Yorker.
Section 31 (Game)
How well do you know your sci-fi spaceships, aircraft, and vehicles? As a Section 31 agent, you will be required to covertly gather information on various of these as potential targets, and this afternoon, we will test your ability to correctly identify a few!
and more…
Meeting Theme: We will be discussing, during the course of this meeting, our annual club field trip, upcoming in June! We’ll welcome your suggestions as to which museum, exhibition, or interesting locale to visit this year.
We’re looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible at our downtown meeting hall for this May 2025 meeting! Bring a friend! See you all there tomorrow, Saturday, May 10, 1:00PM-5:00PM!
Please Note: While we strive to keep on schedule, we do, sometimes, fall behind a little, or find ourselves having to reshuffle the order of items on the agenda for one reason or another, or reschedule planned presentations/discussions. Therefore, please understand that all programming is subject to change!
This May 2025 edition, and past issues of Impulse can also be viewed or downloaded via our Website (www.MonSFFA.ca); visit the Impulse page.
This issue promotes the upcoming May club meeting (this Saturday, the 10th), outlines the club’s 2025 summer schedule and reports on our presentation on “Ssssnakes in SF&F” at the club’s April get-together.
Enjoy your issue of Impulse! And we hope to see you at our upcoming club meeting, Saturday, May 10, 1:00PM-5:00PM.
