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Regarding India's first solar observatory, the year 2026 will be like no other.

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

As per scientific data, this occurs roughly once every 11 years when the Sun's polarity reverses – the Earth equivalent could be the North and South poles changing places.

This period marked by intense activity. It involves our star changing from peaceful to violent and is marked by a significant rise in the number of solar eruptions and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – massive bubbles of fire that blow out of the Sun's outermost layer.

Composed of ionized particles, a CME may have a mass up to a trillion kilograms and reach a speed of up to 3,000km each second. It can head out in any direction, even toward the Earth. At top speed, the journey takes a CME about half a day to cover the vast distance between Earth and the Sun.

"In the normal or quiet periods, the Sun launches a few solar eruptions daily," explains a leading scientist. "In 2026, we expect there will be over ten daily."

Studying CMEs is one of the most important research goals for the Indian maiden solar mission. Firstly, because the ejections offer a chance to learn about the Sun at the centre of our solar system, and two, because activities occurring on the Sun threaten infrastructure on Earth and in orbit.

Effects on Earth and Space Infrastructure

Coronal mass ejections seldom present a direct threat to human life, yet they impact our planet through generating magnetic disturbances affecting conditions in Earth's vicinity, where about 11,000 satellites, including many from India, are stationed.

"The most beautiful manifestations from solar eruptions are auroras, being a clear example that charged particles from our star journey to Earth," the scientist explains.

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

Past Solar Incidents

• The strongest solar storm in history was the 1859 solar superstorm that disabled communication systems across the globe
• During 1989, a part of Quebec's power grid was knocked out, affecting six million people in darkness for nine hours
• In November 2015, solar activity disrupted flight operations, causing chaos in Sweden and some other European airports
• Recently in 2022, an ejection caused dozens of spacecraft failing

With capability to observe what happens on the Sun's corona and spot a solar storm or solar eruption as it happens, record its temperature at the source and watch its trajectory, it can work as a forewarning to switch off electrical systems and satellites redirecting them out of harm's way.

The Mission's Unique Advantage

While other space observatories observing the Sun, Aditya-L1 has an advantage compared to rivals regarding studying the solar atmosphere.

"Aditya-L1's coronagraph has perfect dimensions enabling it to effectively simulate the Moon, fully covering the solar disk permitting an uninterrupted view of nearly the entire of the corona 24 hours a day, throughout the year, including during solar events," notes the expert.

In other words, the coronagraph functions as a synthetic eclipse, obscuring the solar glare allowing researchers continuously observe the dim solar atmosphere – a feat natural eclipses does only during specific moments.

Moreover, it's unique that can study eruptions using optical wavelengths, enabling it to determine a CME's temperature and heat energy – crucial data that show the intensity a CME would be if it headed toward Earth.

Preparation for Peak Period

In preparation for next year's peak solar activity period, scientists worked together analyzing the data obtained from a major solar eruption recorded by the mission has recorded until now.

This event began in September 2024 during early hours. The eruption's weight was 270 million tonnes – the iceberg that sank Titanic weighed much less.

Initially, the heat was 1.8 million degrees Celsius with energy equivalent was equivalent to 2.2 million megatons of TNT – in comparison the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were much smaller and 21 kilotons each.

Even though these figures seem massive, the expert classifies it as a moderate event.

The asteroid that eliminated prehistoric life on Earth carried enormous energy and during solar peak occurs, we could see CMEs carrying power equal to greater levels.

"I consider the CME we analyzed happened when the Sun was in the normal activity phase. This establishes the benchmark for future comparison to evaluate what to expect during solar maximum occurs," he states.

"The insights gained will help us developing protective measures to be adopted safeguarding spacecraft in near space. Additionally, they'll aid achieving a better understanding of our space environment," he adds.