The upcoming days are likely to be full of unusual activities in the sky as Sun approaches Solar Maxima, a period of maximum activity in its 11-year solar cycle. As a result of this increased activity of the Sun, a massive Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) was launched by the ball of fire at the centre of our solar system on August 14. Before the dust of the first CME could settle, the next day, the Sun launched another CME right at the previous one’s tail.
As per models developed by the USA’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), researchers are expecting a possible case of Cannibal CME. A Cannibal Coronal Mass Ejection is an event where one CME is engulfed or gobbled up by another, resulting in a bigger CME with jumbled and tangled magnetic fields.
This possible case of CMEs hitting the Earth, in this case, is likely to happen on August 18. The interaction could lead to geomagnetic storms ranging from minor (G1) to moderate (G2). If the storm is G1, then it could impact satellite operations, deter migratory animals, and fluctuate power grids, among other mild effects. However, if the storm is of moderately levelled G2 then it could be damaging to transformers, can pose a hindrance to spacecraft operations, and disturb high-frequency radio propagation. In both cases, the possibility of solar flare-ups, auroras, also exists.
As per a report by Spaceweather.com, “the two CMEs will arrive together on August 18,” and the travelling speed of the two CMEs is reported to be more than 600 kilometres per second. The recently captured images by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) spacecraft show CMEs erupting from the Sun’s surface and confirm that the ejections have an Earth-directed component.
A similar cannibal CME was observed in March this year and resulted in a powerful G3 geomagnetic storm. The NOAA reported that the CME was ejected from the Sunspot called AR2975 which shoots out flares of electrically charged particles frequently.
Read the Latest News and Breaking News here
Comments
0 comment