With The Sun Nearing Its Peak, Aditya-L1 Prepares For Fierce Coronal Mass Ejections

India's first solar observatory in space, Aditya-L1, is preparing for a rare and critical moment. For the first time since it entered its orbit last year, the mission will get a front-row view of the Sun as it reaches its maximum activity cycle in 2026. This period arrives roughly every 11 years, when the Sun's magnetic poles switch places, turning a usually calm Sun into a highly active one, reported BBC.

Scientists predict the coming year could be quite turbulent. During this extreme phase of the Sun, the number of solar storms and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) is expected to increase rapidly. CMEs are massive explosions from the Sun's outer layers, consisting of charged particles. They can weigh up to one trillion kilograms and travel at speeds of up to 3,000 kilometers per second. At their maximum speed, they can reach Earth in just 15 hours.

Professor R Ramesh of the Indian Institute of Astronomical Physics (IIA) explains that under normal conditions, the Sun emits two to three CMEs daily. However, by 2026, this number could increase to 10 or more daily. He is the lead scientist for the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (Velc), considered the most important of Aditya-L1's seven instruments.

The mission's primary goal is to study CMEs. This helps us understand the Sun in depth, allowing scientists to prepare for potential impacts on Earth and technological systems in space.

Although CMEs do not directly harm humans, their impact on technological infrastructure can be severe. Their particles create geomagnetic storms that can impact the approximately 11,000 satellites operating in near-Earth space, including India's 136 satellites.

CMEs produce beautiful auroras, but they can also damage satellites electronic systems, disrupt communications, and even disrupt power grids. Historically, these effects have been demonstrated, the Carrington event of 1859, Quebec's nine-hour power outage in 1989, and the destruction of 38 satellites by a CME in 2022 are examples.

According to Professor Ramesh, if a CME can be detected in real time, its temperature measured, and its direction tracked, it becomes possible to shut down power grids or move satellites to a safer location.

While many missions study the Sun, Aditya-L1 stands out for its coronagraph technology. Professor Ramesh explains that its shape allows it to act like an "artificial moon," blocking the Sun's intense light and allowing almost the entire corona to be visible day and night, even during eclipses. This capability is not available on other missions.

Aditya-L1 is the only mission that studies solar eruptions in visible light, making it easier to estimate the temperature and energy of a CME. This gives insight into its strength if a CME were headed toward Earth.

A large CME that set a new standard

To prepare for 2026, the International Meteorological Institute (IIA) and NASA jointly studied a massive CME recorded by Aditya-L1. It exploded on September 13, 2024, at 00:30 GMT. It had a mass of 270 million tons, several times heavier than the iceberg that sank the Titanic. Its temperature at origin was 1.8 million degrees Celsius, and its energy was equivalent to 2.2 million megatons of TNT. For comparison, the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs were only 15 and 21 kilotons, respectively.

Despite its large size, Professor Ramesh describes it as a "medium-sized" CME. At peak activity, some CMEs can exceed the energy of the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs.

He says this 2024 event lays the groundwork for possible scenarios in 2026. Based on this, scientists can take measures to enhance the safety of satellites and develop a better understanding of the space around Earth.

As the Sun approaches its peak activity, Aditya-L1 is poised to provide vital information. With its continuous visibility of the corona and powerful instruments, this mission will play a vital role in monitoring solar storms and protecting Earth from their potential dangers.