Space weather as a research area investigates the variable conditions in space driven primarily by solar activity and their impact on the heliosphere, near-Earth environment, and technological systems. It encompasses the study of the solar magnetic field, flares, coronal mass ejections, high-speed solar wind streams, and energetic particles, and how these phenomena interact with planetary magnetospheres, ionospheres, and upper atmospheres. Research integrates observations, theory, and physics-based modeling to understand and predict geomagnetic storms, radiation belt dynamics, ionospheric disturbances, and associated hazards to satellites, communication and navigation systems, power grids, and human spaceflight.
A 178-year-old mystery surrounding one of the earliest recorded examples of space weather affecting technology has been solved by an international team led by Lancaster University.
Planetary Sciences
21 hours ago
0
31
The sun is the reason life exists on our small, blue planet. It provides solar radiation that warms the planet and ignites intricate biochemical processes like photosynthesis, producing oxygen for life to breathe. However, ...
Astronomy
Sep 15, 2026
0
30
In May 2024, Earth experienced its most intense geomagnetic storm since the Halloween storms of 2003. This "superstorm" filled night skies in many parts of the world with colorful aurorae, and it disrupted some infrastructure, ...
Planetary Sciences
Sep 14, 2026
0
42
The joint BepiColombo mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is settling into orbit around Mercury after an eight-year journey. In early September, BepiColombo's two orbiters, ...
Planetary Sciences
Sep 10, 2026
0
23
Radiation from space is constantly entering Earth's atmosphere, but how much of it reaches the altitudes used by commercial aircraft depends not only on height and location, but also on the activity of the sun. A new study ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 8, 2026
0
16
In 1967, a solar storm nearly triggered World War III by jamming early-warning radar systems in the United States, causing U.S. leaders to think the Soviet Union was responsible. Though society averted catastrophe thanks ...
Planetary Sciences
Sep 7, 2026
0
25
A private spacecraft that was supposed to provide a lifeline to NASA's Swift Observatory managed to get close to the sinking telescope and even snap photos two weeks after the rescue was abandoned.
Space Exploration
Sep 4, 2026
0
42
During the Aug. 12 total solar eclipse over Europe, scientists aimed to study a long-standing mystery: why the sun's outer atmosphere, the corona, is far hotter than its visible surface. Capturing the data they needed meant ...
Space Exploration
Aug 27, 2026
0
10
Science seems like a straightforward endeavor. You come up with a hypothesis, collect data to prove or disprove it, and analyze that data to see whether the hypothesis is right. But anyone who actually does science will tell ...
Astronomy
Aug 22, 2026
0
85
During a coronal mass ejection (CME), the sun hurls billions of tons of magnetized plasma into space. These eruptions are among the most powerful events in the solar system, and when they are aimed toward Earth, they can ...
