A coronal mass ejection (CME) is a large-scale eruptive solar phenomenon in which magnetized plasma from the Sun’s corona is expelled into interplanetary space, typically associated with magnetic reconnection in active regions or filament eruptions. CMEs involve the release of up to ~10¹⁶ g of plasma embedded in coherent magnetic flux rope structures and can attain speeds from a few hundred to over 2,000 km/s. Propagating through the heliosphere, they drive interplanetary shocks, restructure the solar wind and heliospheric magnetic field, and, upon interacting with planetary magnetospheres, can induce strong geomagnetic disturbances.
New research led by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has confirmed decades-old theoretical models of magnetic reconnection, the process that releases stored magnetic energy to drive solar flares, coronal mass ejections ...
Astronomy
Aug 18, 2025
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391
Solar storms that fling magnetism across the solar system can knock out satellites, power grids, communication and navigation systems, and endanger astronauts in space. Scientists can observe these phenomena, called coronal ...
Planetary Sciences
Aug 7, 2025
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20
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) detailed an inverse relationship between the brightness of the solar corona and the velocity of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in a paper published in The Astrophysical Journal on July ...
Planetary Sciences
Jul 15, 2025
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54
Solar Maximum 2025 is the expected peak of solar activity in Solar Cycle 25, characterized by heightened sunspots, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections. This peak is anticipated around mid to late 2025, coinciding with ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 7, 2025
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141
The impacts of space weather such as extreme solar winds and magnetic waves are not limited to outer space. Bursts of plasma emanating from the sun, for instance, can temporarily intensify electric and magnetic fields on ...
Planetary Sciences
Jun 23, 2025
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32
Southwest Research Institute's Dr. Craig DeForest discussed the latest accomplishments of NASA's PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) mission during a media event at the 246th American Astronomical Society ...
Planetary Sciences
Jun 11, 2025
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40
Local weather alerts are familiar warnings for potentially dangerous conditions, but an alert that puts all of Earth on warning is rare.
Astronomy
Jun 10, 2025
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84
Solar storms have the potential to cause catastrophic damage. One that occurred around the end of October 2003 (now called the 2003 Halloween Storm) caused an estimated $27B in damages. That number will only increase as humanity ...
Planetary Sciences
Jun 2, 2025
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25
Some 13,000 years ago, the sun emitted a huge belch of radiation that bombarded Earth and left its imprint in ancient tree rings. That solar storm was the most powerful one ever recorded. The next strongest was the 1859 Carrington ...
Planetary Sciences
May 22, 2025
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113
On March 15, 2024, near the peak of the current solar cycle, the sun produced a solar flare and an accompanying coronal mass ejection (CME), a massive explosion of gas and magnetic energy that carries with it large amounts ...
Planetary Sciences
May 14, 2025
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