When you think about massive solar events, we often think about coronal mass ejections, solar storms and solar flares. According to NASA , a solar flare is an intense burst of radiation that comes from the release of magnetic energy linked with the sunspots. These are regarded as some of the largest explosive events of our solar system. Flares are essentially giant bursts of X-rays and energy that travel at the speed of light across all directions in the solar system.
They are often seen as flashes of light on the Sun. The flare releases photons at almost every wavelength of the spectrum. Flares take around 8 minutes to reach Earth.
They are essentially monitored through x-rays and optical lights. Solar flares impact Earth only if they occur on the side of the sun facing the Earth.
Since flares comprise photons they travel out of the area where the flare took place, thus if we are able to see the origin of the flare, it will impact us. Basically, the outer solar atmosphere, also known as the corona is made up of strong magnetic fields. In places where these fields are closed, usually over sunspot groups, the solar atmosphere can spontaneously release bubbles of gas and magnetic fields, which are called coronal mass ejections.
A massive CME can consist of a billion tons of matter and can be accelerated to several million miles per hour in a breathtaking explosion.
The explosions impact any planet or spacecraft in its path. These particles often take around two to three days to get to Earth, but only when the cloud was aimed at Earth during the explosion. Solar storm is essentially a term used to describe atmospheric effects that are experienced on Earth from events like coronal mass ejections and solar flares that occur on the Sun. Videos News India.
Latest Stories. Mutual Funds. September 23, This is a question we are often asked: what is the difference between a coronal mass ejection CME and a solar flare?
We discussed it in a recent astrophoto post , but today NASA put out a video with amazing graphics that explains it—and visualizes it—extremely well. CMEs are giant clouds of particles from the Sun hurled out into space, while flares are flashes of light—occurring in various wavelengths—on the Sun.
You can find even more details from NASA here. More from Astronomy and Astrophysics. Use this form if you have come across a typo, inaccuracy or would like to send an edit request for the content on this page. For general inquiries, please use our contact form. For general feedback, use the public comments section below please adhere to guidelines.
Your feedback is important to us. However, we do not guarantee individual replies due to the high volume of messages. Your email address is used only to let the recipient know who sent the email. Neither your address nor the recipient's address will be used for any other purpose. The information you enter will appear in your e-mail message and is not retained by Phys. You can unsubscribe at any time and we'll never share your details to third parties.
More information Privacy policy. This site uses cookies to assist with navigation, analyse your use of our services, collect data for ads personalisation and provide content from third parties. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Share Twit Share Email. Solar prominences and filaments on the Sun on September 18, , as seen with a hydrogen alpha filter. Explore further. Source: Universe Today. This document is subject to copyright.
Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only. Global consensus needed to develop climate risk disclosures for companies 11 hours ago. Relevant PhysicsForums posts Question about Kuiper belt 14 hours ago. Level of details in prime focus vs eyepiece images 14 hours ago.
Our Beautiful Universe - Photos and Videos 18 hours ago. Temperature of gas in a cluster Nov 12,
0コメント