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For Aditya-L1, the year 2026 is expected to be truly unique.

This marks the initial occasion the observatory – that entered into space last year – will be able to watch the Sun when it reaches the peak of its solar cycle.

According to research, it comes roughly once every 11 years when the Sun's magnetic poles flip – a similar Earth scenario would be the planet's poles changing places.

This period of great turbulence. It involves our star transition from calm to stormy and features a huge increase in the frequency of solar eruptions and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – enormous clouds of fire that erupt from the solar corona.

Composed of charged particles, a coronal mass ejection may have a mass of billions of tons and can attain velocities of up to 3,000km each second. It can head out in any direction, even toward our planet. At top speed, it would take an ejection about half a day to traverse the 150 million km Earth-Sun distance.

"In the normal or quiet periods, our star emits two to three CMEs a day," explains a leading scientist. "In 2026, it's anticipated there will be over ten each day."

Researching CMEs is one of the key research goals of India's maiden solar mission. Firstly, because the ejections provide an opportunity to study the star in the center of our solar system, and two, since events that take place on the Sun threaten infrastructure on our planet and in space.

Effects on Earth and Space Infrastructure

CMEs rarely pose a direct threat to human life, but they do affect our planet through generating geomagnetic storms that impact the weather in near space, where about 11,000 satellites, comprising Indian satellites, orbit.

"The most spectacular manifestations from solar eruptions include northern lights, being direct evidence that charged particles from our star are travelling to Earth," the expert explains.

"However, they may cause electronic systems aboard spacecraft fail, disable power grids and disrupt weather and communication satellites."

Historical Solar Incidents

• The strongest solar event in history was the Carrington Event that disabled telegraph lines across the globe
• In 1989, sections of Canadian electrical network failed, leaving millions without power for hours
• In November 2015, solar storms disrupted flight operations, leading to disruption across Scandinavia and various European airports
• Recently in 2022, a CME caused dozens of spacecraft failing

With capability to observe events in the solar atmosphere and spot a solar storm or a coronal mass ejection as it happens, record its temperature at the source and track its trajectory, it can work as advanced warning to switch off electrical systems and satellites and move them to safety.

Aditya-L1's Special Capability

There are other space observatories observing our star, India's spacecraft holds an edge compared to rivals when it comes to watching the corona.

"The instrument is the exact size that lets it effectively simulate the Moon, completely blocking the solar disk permitting an uninterrupted view of nearly the entire solar atmosphere around the clock, 365 days a year, even during solar events," notes the expert.

In other words, the coronagraph acts like an artificial Moon, blocking the solar glare allowing researchers continuously observe the dim solar atmosphere – something natural eclipses does only during eclipses.

Additionally, it's unique that can study solar events in visible light, letting it measure eruption heat and thermal output – crucial data that show how strong of an eruption if it headed toward Earth.

Preparation for Peak Period

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

This event began on 13 September 2024 during early hours. Its mass totaled billions of tons – the iceberg that sank Titanic weighed much less.

At origin, its temperature reached extreme levels and the energy content was equivalent to 2.2 million megatons of explosives – in comparison nuclear weapons used in Japan were much smaller and 21 kilotons respectively.

Although the numbers seem incredibly large, the scientist classifies it as a "medium-sized" one.

The asteroid which wiped out the dinosaurs on Earth carried enormous energy and during the Sun's maximum activity cycle, we could see eruptions carrying power equal to greater levels.

"I consider the CME we analyzed to have occurred when the Sun was in the normal activity phase. Now this sets the standard that we'll be using assessing what is in store when the maximum activity cycle arrives," he states.

"The learnings gained will assist in developing protective measures to be adopted safeguarding satellites in near space. They will also help achieving a better understanding of near-Earth space," he concludes.