coronal mass ejection

After a relatively low period of solar activity, the Sun sprung back into action yesterday, May 16. A near-X-class solar flare eruption occurred on the southeastern limb of the Sun. Even as the explosion was on the horizon of the Sun and a part of it was eclipsed due to its edge, the solar flare had a major impact on the Earth. Ultraviolet radiation ionized the upper atmosphere and caused a shortwave radio blackout over North America and the northern parts of South America. And now, fears are rising over another major…

We have seen rampant solar activity in the past few months. Natural phenomena such as sunspot eruptions, solar storms, solar flares, geomagnetic storms, and more, have been bombarding Earth. But why? According to NASA, this is because the Sun entered solar cycle 25 in 2019 and it is expected that it will hit its peak in July 2025, thus resulting in increased solar activity even further during the peak. Although this solar activity might seem harmless due to the distance of the Sun from our planet, it can cause major…

After days of warnings for a G3-class geomagnetic storm, yesterday the coronal mass ejection (CME) finally hit the Earth and it turned out to be a dud. The impact only sparked minor G1-class storms briefly before being dispersed by the planet's magnetosphere. While the Earth was lucky in this encounter, soon a far bigger problem is coming its way. Researchers have spotted a huge sunspot group on the farside of the Sun and it is big enough to change the way the Sun vibrates. It is expected to face our planet the next week…

On Tuesday, it was revealed that a coronal mass ejection (CME) cloud was released during a powerful solar flare eruption over the weekend. This flare was a part of multiple such eruptions that took place over a period of three days when a sunspot complex turned unstable and reversed its polarity. The resultant CME is said to be a potent one and is capable of sparking a powerful solar storm on Earth. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has predicted that the storm will hit our planet later today,…

While solar storms are routine affairs for higher latitude regions such as northern Europe, the USA, Canada, and especially the Arctic circle, it is an extremely rare occurrence for places such as India, which are much nearer to the equator. However, on April 23, when the Earth suffered the worst solar storm of 6 years, even India fell in its geoeffective region. As a result, the night skies of Ladakh were filled with bright aurora display. Luckily, astronomers were able to capture images of this rare event to showcase…

On April 30, the forecasters from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned about a sunspot, named AR3288, which was growing at an exponential rate and contained unstable delta-class magnetic fields. Just a day after the warning, the sunspot exploded, blasting a powerful solar flare in the direction of the Earth. As per NASA, it was an M7-class flare eruption and it sparked a radio blackout over the Atlantic Ocean region. The bigger question now is whether a solar storm is coming for the Earth.A…

Amazingly, astronomers are perplexed right now. A solar storm was predicted to strike the Earth on either April 27 or 28 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The storm was going to be triggered by a glancing blow from a coronal mass ejection (CME) which was headed for the Earth. But for some reason, it has not arrived yet. While this could mean that the CME missed the Earth entirely, some believe this is too early to celebrate and could mean a bigger worry for our planet. The delayed solar storm…

It has not even been a full week since one of the strongest G4-class geomagnetic storm struck the Earth and now, another similarly powerful storm is set to hit our planet today, April 28. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a coronal mass ejection (CME) cloud is expected to sideswipe our planet, sparking another solar storm event. The CME was released on April 24 when a magnetic filament on the surface of the Sun turned unstable and exploded. With this solar storm set to hit the Earth…

In just a few hours, the Earth is expected to witness a G1-class geomagnetic storm. This minor storm will be triggered by a coronal mass ejection (CME) cloud which is going to deliver glancing blows to the Earth. The storm is not expected to be intense. And one of the reasons behind that is the CME cloud is not a cannibal CME. This particular subtype of CME is considered one of the most dangerous solar phenomena when it comes to triggering solar storms. Recently, the NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO)…

Rampant solar activity such as sunspot eruptions, solar storms, solar flares, geomagnetic storms and more, have all plagued Earth for the past few months. This is because the Sun entered solar cycle 25 in 2019 and it is expected that it will hit its peak in July 2025. Although this solar activity might seem harmless due to the distance of the Sun from our planet, it can cause major damage.Recently, forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) revealed that a strong CME hit Earth on April 23…