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For Aditya-L1, 2026 will be truly unique.

It's the first time the observatory – which was placed into space recently – can watch our star when it reaches the peak of its solar cycle.

According to scientific data, it comes roughly every 11 years when the Sun's magnetic poles flip – a similar Earth scenario would be the North and South poles changing places.

This period of great turbulence. It involves the Sun changing from calm to stormy and features a huge increase in the number of solar eruptions and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – massive bubbles of plasma that erupt from the solar corona.

Composed of charged particles, a coronal mass ejection may have a mass up to a trillion kilograms and reach a speed exceeding 2,000 miles each second. It can travel toward various directions, including towards the Earth. At top speed, it would take a CME about half a day to traverse the vast distance between Earth and the Sun.

"In the normal or quiet periods, our star emits a few solar eruptions daily," says a leading scientist. "Next year, it's anticipated there will be over ten each day."

Researching CMEs is one of the most important scientific objectives for the Indian first solar observatory. One, as these eruptions provide an opportunity to study the star in the center of our solar system, and secondly, since events occurring on the Sun threaten systems on our planet and in space.

Effects on Earth and Space Infrastructure

CMEs rarely pose a direct threat to human life, yet they impact our planet through generating magnetic disturbances that impact the weather in near space, where nearly thousands of spacecraft, including Indian satellites, are stationed.

"The most beautiful displays from solar eruptions include northern lights, which are direct evidence that solar particles from our star are travelling toward our planet," the expert clarifies.

"However, they may cause electronic systems on a satellite fail, knock down electrical networks and affect meteorological and telecom spacecraft."

Past Solar Incidents

• The strongest solar storm ever recorded occurred during the Carrington Event which knocked out telegraph lines worldwide
• In 1989, a part of Quebec's power grid failed, affecting millions in darkness for hours
• During late 2015, solar activity disrupted air traffic control, causing disruption in Sweden and various European air hubs
• In February 2022, an ejection caused dozens of spacecraft failing

If we are able to see events on the Sun's corona and spot a solar storm or a coronal mass ejection in real time, record its temperature at origin and track its trajectory, this serves as advanced warning to shut down power grids and spacecraft redirecting them out of harm's way.

Aditya-L1's Special Capability

There are other space observatories observing our star, India's spacecraft has an advantage over others when it comes to studying the solar atmosphere.

"The instrument is the exact size enabling it to effectively simulate lunar coverage, fully covering the Sun's photosphere permitting continuous observation of nearly the entire of the corona 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, including during solar events," says the researcher.

Essentially, the coronagraph functions as a synthetic eclipse, blocking the Sun's bright surface to let researchers continuously observe the dim solar atmosphere – a feat the real Moon provide only during specific moments.

Moreover, it's unique that can study eruptions in visible light, letting it measure eruption heat and thermal output – crucial data indicating how strong of an eruption when traveling our direction.

Readiness for Maximum Activity

To prepare for next year's peak solar activity period, scientists worked together to study the data gathered from a major solar eruption recorded by the mission has recorded until now.

It originated on 13 September 2024 during early hours. The eruption's weight totaled billions of tons – the iceberg that struck the ship was 1.5 million tonnes.

At origin, the heat reached extreme levels and the energy content comparable to 2.2 million megatons of TNT – relative to the atomic bombs used in Japan were 15 kilotons in scale respectively.

Although the numbers make it sound incredibly large, the expert describes it as a moderate event.

The space rock that eliminated prehistoric life on Earth carried enormous energy and during solar peak occurs, we could see eruptions with energy content matching even more than that.

"In my view this eruption we analyzed to have occurred during periods of typical solar activity. This establishes the standard for future comparison to evaluate what to expect during solar maximum occurs," he states.

"The learnings gained will assist in developing protective measures to implement to protect spacecraft in orbit. They will also help us gain a better understanding of our space environment," he adds.