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For India's first solar observatory, 2026 will be like no other.

This marks the initial occasion the spacecraft – which was placed into space recently – will be able to watch our star during its maximum activity cycle.

According to research, it comes approximately every 11 years when the Sun's magnetic poles flip – a similar Earth scenario would be the planet's poles swapping positions.

This period of great turbulence. It sees the Sun transition from calm to stormy and is marked by a significant rise in the number of solar storms and massive solar flares – enormous clouds of plasma that erupt from the solar corona.

Composed of charged particles, a coronal mass ejection may have a mass of billions of tons and reach velocities exceeding 2,000 miles per second. It can travel in any direction, including towards the Earth. At top speed, the journey takes an ejection about half a day to cover the 150 million km Earth-Sun distance.

"During typical or quiet periods, our star emits a few solar eruptions a day," says an astrophysics expert. "In 2026, we expect there will be over ten each day."

Researching coronal mass ejections ranks among the key scientific objectives for the Indian maiden solar mission. Firstly, as these eruptions provide an opportunity to study the Sun in the center of our planetary system, and two, because activities that take place on the solar surface threaten infrastructure on our planet and in space.

Effects on Our Planet and Space Infrastructure

Coronal mass ejections rarely pose a direct threat to human life, yet they impact life on Earth by causing magnetic disturbances affecting the weather in Earth's vicinity, where about thousands of spacecraft, comprising many from India, are stationed.

"The most beautiful displays of a CME are auroras, which are a clear example that solar particles from our star are travelling toward our planet," the scientist explains.

"However, they may cause electronic systems aboard spacecraft fail, knock down electrical networks and disrupt weather and communication satellites."

Historical Solar Incidents

• The most powerful solar event ever recorded occurred during the Carrington Event that disabled communication systems across the globe
• In 1989, a part of Quebec's power grid failed, leaving millions in darkness for nine hours
• During late 2015, solar storms disrupted flight operations, leading to chaos in Sweden and various European air hubs
• In February 2022, an ejection caused dozens of spacecraft being lost

If we are able to see what happens on the Sun's corona and detect solar activity or a coronal mass ejection in real time, measure its heat at origin and track its path, this serves as advanced warning to switch off electrical systems and spacecraft redirecting them to safety.

Aditya-L1's Special Capability

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

"Aditya-L1's coronagraph is the exact size that lets it nearly mimic the Moon, fully covering the solar disk permitting continuous observation of nearly the entire of the corona 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, including during eclipses and occultations," says the expert.

In other words, this instrument functions as an artificial Moon, blocking the Sun's bright surface allowing scientists continuously observe its faint outer corona – something the real Moon provide only during specific moments.

Additionally, this is the only mission that can study solar events using optical wavelengths, letting it determine eruption heat and heat energy – crucial data indicating how strong a CME would be if it headed our direction.

Preparation for Peak Period

In preparation for next year's solar maximum, researchers collaborated to study the data gathered from one of the largest solar eruption recorded by the mission has observed recently.

This event began in September 2024 during early hours. Its mass was 270 million tonnes – the iceberg that struck the ship weighed much less.

At origin, its temperature reached extreme levels with energy equivalent was equivalent to 2.2 million megatons of explosives – relative to the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were 15 kilotons in scale respectively.

Although the numbers make it sound incredibly large, the expert describes it as a "medium-sized" one.

The space rock that eliminated the dinosaurs on Earth was 100 million megatons and when the Sun's maximum activity cycle, we could see eruptions with energy content equal to greater levels.

"I consider the CME we analyzed to have occurred when the Sun of typical solar activity. Now this sets the standard for future comparison to evaluate what is in store during solar maximum arrives," he says.

"The learnings from this will help us developing protective measures to implement safeguarding spacecraft in orbit. They will also help us gain deeper knowledge of our space environment," he adds.