Over the past weeks, the sun has been erupting strongly. However, one particular solar eruption was quite intriguing.
Strong Solar Eruption on the Sun's Far Side
According to Science Alert, on March 12, a spacecraft that monitors the sun was able to document a huge material blast from the sun's far side. This material was from a CME, or coronal mass ejection. Picked up as a growing cloud or halo of solar debris, the material rapidly moved away from the sun at the speed of 2,1217 kilometers per second.
In most cases, solar eruptions on the sun's far side do not typically hit earth. This is because they face a different direction. However, this solar eruption was so powerful that earth's satellites were able to pick up particle signals that were accelerated by the shockwave of the eruption.
Though researchers are still looking into the exact source of the solar eruption, NASA reports that it is thought that the CME came from AR3234, which is an active solar region. From late February up until early March, this region was on the side that faced the earth. During that period, it released 15 M-class flares and a strong X-class flare.
According to the analysis of the Moon to Mars Space Weather Office of NASA, the CME's speed made it classified as a R-type (rare) CME, as reported by Space Ref.
A major solar eruption on the far side of the sun was observed early today. This is one we are glad stayed in the opposite direction. Some models indicate this generated CME on LASCO was in excess of 1,500km/s... which could have been problematic. #spaceweather pic.twitter.com/tsjMcpasiQ
— Nick Stewart (@NStewWX) March 13, 2023
ALSO READ: Sun Expels Super X-Class Flare; Officials Expect More Solar Eruption To Come
The blast may have hit the Parker Solar Probe of NASA head-on. It is also known as a "halo" CME because of how it is evenly spread out from the sun in a ring-shaped pattern. Such types of CMEs depend on the position of the observer. They take place when the solar eruption aligns directly toward or away from earth, as demonstrated in this case.
Despite the solar eruption taking place on the sun's far side, earth still felt its impacts. As such ejections blast across the cosmos, they produce a shockwave that may boost the speeds of particles along the path of the CME. This mirrors how ocean waves accelerate surfers. Called SEPs (Solar Energetic Particles), the fast particles can take 30 minutes to travel 93 million miles from the sun to earth.
Though such SEPs are commonly seen among solar eruptions that face earth, they are less common for solar eruptions on the sun's far side. Nevertheless, SEPs were picked up from this solar eruption, which means that the CME was strong enough to lead to various collisions that eventually reached the earth's side of the sun.
Space weather scientists from NASA are still looking into how the event was able to lead to such far-reaching and impressive impacts.
Solar Cycle
While the sun has been observed to have heightened solar activity, these events just reflect how the sun is moving toward its cycle's peak in the 11-year loop. Science Alert reports that in the coming one to two years, the sun will be most active. The huge star will crawl with huge sunspots and blast strong flares.
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Check out more news and information on the Sun in Science Times.
