Piece of Sun Breaks Off, Scientists Are Baffled
Research about the sun has always fascinated scientists, but not when a phenomenon can affect the Earth. A massive part of the Sun broke off, and experts weren’t sure how this can impact our planet.
Scientists have often studied solar projections. One instance was last year’s solar flares which endangered Earth. Such events can alter power grids, GPS systems, and even radio signals.
The Sun emitted a strong solar flare on Feb. 11, 2023, peaking at 10:48 a.m. ET. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured an image of the event, which was classified as X1.1. https://t.co/R3S2hRt4Zd pic.twitter.com/AcZtXaLwxv
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) February 13, 2023
Recently, a huge tear on the sun’s surface created a swirl on its north pole which is tornado-like. NASA caught this rare occurrence via its James Webb Telescope. This remarkable phenomenon stunned the space community.
Dr. Tamitha Skov, a space weather forecaster tweeted. “Talk about Polar Vortex! Material from a northern prominence just broke away from the main filament & is now circulating in a massive polar vortex around the north pole of our Star. Implications for understanding the Sun’s atmospheric dynamics above 55° here cannot be overstated!”
According to NASA, there is a huge bright part expanding outward on the sun’s surface. Although strange activity normally happens at the sun’s latitude on its 11-year solar cycle, this phenomenon stuns the experts.
Talk about Polar Vortex! Material from a northern prominence just broke away from the main filament & is now circulating in a massive polar vortex around the north pole of our Star. Implications for understanding the Sun's atmospheric dynamics above 55° here cannot be overstated! pic.twitter.com/1SKhunaXvP
— Dr. Tamitha Skov (@TamithaSkov) February 2, 2023
Sun and its Mysteries
Although there have been observations of the sun’s filament tear-ups in the past, this incident isn’t like those. Solar physicist and the deputy director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado, Scott McIntosh said that they’re uncertain what causes this rare event.
McIntosh said, “Once every solar cycle, it forms at the 55-degree latitude and it starts to march up to the solar poles.”
He added, “It’s very curious. There is a big ‘why’ question around it. Why does it only move toward the pole one time and then disappear and then come back, magically, three or four years later in exactly the same region?”
Happy #SunDay! This week’s space weather report includes 20 notable solar flares, 34 coronal mass ejections, and no geomagnetic storms. This video from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory shows an M6 flare from February 7 around 2 minutes in. pic.twitter.com/qPMHUtzcin
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) February 12, 2023
While some experts conclude that the sun’s magnetic field might have something to do with the phenomenon, it still stays a mystery due to the human’s limited view. Scientists can only see the sun from a geometric plane that contains the Earth’s orbit.
A New York Post report said that this month, the sun emitted several “powerful” flares that altered communication lines on Earth. According to Space.com, it was harmless.
In addition to these unusual events, just last month, the Earth itself also showed some mysterious happenstance. Apparently, its inner core stopped spinning for a millisecond.
Moreover, scientists are currently studying our ultimate star’s unusual event to learn more details and get a clearer picture. The observance is crucial as it keeps on throwing mysterious events.
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