The unusually rapid coronal flare most likely crashed directly into Solar Parker, NASA’s spacecraft that studies the Sun.
NASA scientists have discovered coronal eruption (CME) — plasma flares and magnetic fields from the upper atmosphere or solar corona — impacting active NASA spacecraft, SciTechDaily reported March 21.
The simulation shows that the CME flare emanated from the Sun (white dot in the middle), passing through Mercury (orange dot), while Earth (yellow dot) was on the other side. (Video: NASA Moon to Mars Space Weather Office).
The eruption took place at 10:36 a.m. on March 13 (Hanoi time) and researchers are still collecting data to determine its origin, but this is most likely sunspot area AR3234. This area is located on the far side of the Sun from Earth from late February to early March, releasing 15 class M solar flares of moderate intensity and one strong class X flare.
Based on an analysis by NASA’s Moon to Mars Space Weather Office, the CME moved on March 13 with unusually fast speed, 7,657,000 km/h, hence the rare R rating.
The eruption most likely directly hit NASA’s Solar Parker probe. The spacecraft was then near perihelion (the closest point to the Sun) on its 15th approach to the Sun, just 8.5 million kilometers from the Sun on March 17. On March 13, the Solar Parker ship sent back a signal indicating that it was still operating normally. Scientists and engineers will learn more about the eruption and its potential impact after receiving the next batch of data from the ship.
This eruption was unusually fast, 7,657,000 km/h, and is classified R as rare.
This eruption has an unusually fast speed, 7,657,000 km/h, and is classified as R rare.
Even if the CME erupts on the far side of the Sun, Earth still feels its impact. As it propagates through space, the CME creates a shock wave that can cause particles in its path to increase at incredible speeds, similar to the way ocean waves push surfers. Called Solar Energetic Particles (SEP)these high-speed particles can travel 150 million kilometers from the Sun to Earth in about 30 minutes.
Scientists often observe SEPs after solar flares toward Earth, but flares on the far side of the Sun are rarer. However, spacecraft orbiting Earth detected the SEPs from the March 13 eruption, meaning the CME was strong enough to impact the near side of Earth. NASA space weather scientists are still analyzing to better understand how this event had such a profound impact.
Article source: VnExpress
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The unusually rapid coronal flare allows it to crash directly into Solar Parker, NASA’s spacecraft that studies the Sun. The houses…
