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

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

According to research, this occurs approximately every 11 years as the Sun's polarity reverses – a similar Earth scenario could be the planet's poles swapping positions.

This period of great turbulence. It involves our star transition from calm to stormy and is marked by a huge increase in the number of solar storms and massive solar flares – enormous clouds of fire that blow out from the solar corona.

Composed of charged particles, a CME may have a mass of billions of tons and reach a speed exceeding 2,000 miles 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 cover the 150 million km between Earth and the Sun.

"During typical or low-activity times, the Sun launches a few solar eruptions daily," explains a leading scientist. "In 2026, we expect them to be 10 or more daily."

Studying coronal mass ejections ranks among the most important research goals for the Indian first solar observatory. One, because the ejections offer a chance to study the star in the center of our solar system, and secondly, since events that take place on the solar surface threaten systems on our planet and in space.

Effects on Earth and Orbital Systems

Coronal mass ejections seldom present immediate danger to people, but they do affect our planet by causing magnetic disturbances affecting the weather in near space, where about thousands of spacecraft, comprising many from India, are stationed.

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

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

Historical Solar Incidents

• The strongest solar storm in history was the 1859 solar superstorm that disabled telegraph lines across the globe
• During 1989, a part of Quebec's power grid failed, affecting six million people without power for hours
• During late 2015, solar activity disrupted air traffic control, leading to chaos in Sweden and some other European airports
• In February 2022, an ejection had led to 38 commercial satellites being lost

With capability to see events on the Sun's corona and spot solar activity or solar eruption as it happens, record its temperature at origin and watch its trajectory, it can work as a forewarning to shut down power grids and spacecraft and move them out of harm's way.

The Mission's Special Capability

There are other solar missions watching our star, Aditya-L1 has an advantage compared to rivals regarding studying the solar atmosphere.

"The instrument is the exact size that lets it effectively simulate lunar coverage, fully covering the Sun's photosphere and allowing it an uninterrupted view of nearly the entire of the corona around the clock, throughout the year, including during eclipses and occultations," says the expert.

Essentially, this instrument functions as an artificial Moon, blocking the solar glare to let scientists constantly study the dim solar atmosphere – something the real Moon does only during specific moments.

Additionally, it's unique that can study eruptions using optical wavelengths, enabling it to determine a CME's temperature and heat energy – key clues that show the intensity of an eruption when traveling our direction.

Preparation for Peak Period

To prepare for next year's peak solar activity period, scientists collaborated analyzing information gathered from a major CMEs recorded by the mission has observed recently.

It originated in September 2024 during early hours. Its mass totaled billions of tons – the iceberg that sank Titanic weighed much less.

Initially, the heat was 1.8 million degrees Celsius and the energy content comparable to millions of tons of explosives – relative to nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were much smaller and 21 kilotons each.

Even though these figures seem incredibly large, the scientist describes it as a moderate event.

The asteroid which wiped out prehistoric life on Earth was 100 million megatons and when the Sun's maximum activity cycle, we could see eruptions with energy content matching greater levels.

"I consider the CME we analyzed to have occurred when the Sun was in the normal activity phase. Now this sets the benchmark that we'll be using assessing what to expect during solar maximum occurs," he states.

"The learnings from this will assist in developing the countermeasures to implement safeguarding satellites in orbit. They will also help achieving deeper knowledge of near-Earth space," he concludes.