🔗 Share this article

Regarding Aditya-L1, 2026 is expected to be like no other.

It's the first time the spacecraft – that entered into space recently – will be able to watch our star when it reaches its maximum activity cycle.

As per scientific data, this occurs approximately every 11 years when the Sun's polarity reverses – the Earth equivalent would be the North and South poles changing places.

It's a time marked by intense activity. It sees the Sun changing from calm to stormy and features a significant rise in the frequency of solar storms and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – enormous clouds of fire that erupt from the solar corona.

Composed of ionized particles, a CME can weigh of billions of tons and can attain a speed exceeding 2,000 miles per second. It can head out in any direction, including towards our planet. At top speed, it would take an ejection about half a day to traverse the vast distance between Earth and the Sun.

"In the normal or low-activity times, the Sun launches two to three CMEs a day," says an astrophysics expert. "In 2026, we expect there will be over ten daily."

Studying CMEs ranks among the most important research goals for the Indian maiden solar mission. Firstly, because the ejections offer a chance to study the star at the centre of our solar system, and secondly, because activities that take place on the Sun endanger systems on our planet and in space.

Effects on Earth and Orbital Systems

CMEs seldom present immediate danger to human life, but they do affect life on Earth by causing magnetic disturbances that impact the weather in near space, where about thousands of spacecraft, comprising many from India, orbit.

"The most spectacular displays from solar eruptions are auroras, which are direct evidence that solar particles from Sun journey toward our planet," the scientist clarifies.

"However, they may make all the electronics on a satellite malfunction, disable electrical networks and disrupt weather and communication satellites."

Historical Solar Incidents

• The most powerful solar event ever recorded was the Carrington Event which knocked out communication systems worldwide
• In 1989, sections of Canadian electrical network failed, leaving six million people without power for hours
• In November 2015, solar storms disrupted flight operations, causing chaos across Scandinavia and some other European air hubs
• In February 2022, an ejection caused 38 commercial satellites being lost

If we are able to see events in the solar atmosphere and spot solar activity or a coronal mass ejection in real time, measure its heat at origin and watch its path, it can work as a forewarning to switch off power grids and spacecraft and move them out of harm's way.

Aditya-L1's Unique Advantage

While other solar missions watching the Sun, 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 nearly mimic the Moon, fully covering the solar disk and allowing it an uninterrupted view of nearly the entire of the corona 24 hours a day, throughout the year, including during solar events," notes the researcher.

Essentially, this instrument functions as an artificial Moon, blocking the Sun's bright surface allowing scientists continuously observe the dim solar atmosphere – something the real Moon provide only during eclipses.

Additionally, this is the only mission capable of examining eruptions using optical wavelengths, enabling it to determine a CME's temperature and thermal output – crucial data that show the intensity a CME would be if it headed our direction.

Preparation for Peak Period

To prepare for the upcoming peak solar activity period, researchers collaborated analyzing the data gathered from one of the largest CMEs recorded by the mission has recorded until now.

This event began in September 2024 during early hours. The eruption's weight totaled billions of tons – the iceberg that struck the ship weighed much less.

At origin, its temperature reached extreme levels with energy equivalent was equivalent to millions of tons of explosives – in comparison nuclear weapons used in Japan were 15 kilotons and 21 kilotons each.

Although the numbers seem incredibly large, the scientist classifies it as a moderate event.

The asteroid that eliminated the dinosaurs on Earth was 100 million megatons and during the Sun's maximum activity cycle, we could see CMEs with energy content matching even more than that.

"In my view this eruption we analyzed to have occurred when the Sun of typical solar activity. This establishes the standard that we'll be using to evaluate what to expect when the maximum activity cycle arrives," he states.

"The insights from this will assist in developing protective measures to be adopted to protect satellites in near space. Additionally, they'll aid us gain a better understanding of our space environment," he adds.