Solar flares as a research area encompass the multidisciplinary investigation of rapid energy-release events in the solar atmosphere, focusing on their physical mechanisms, occurrence, energetics, and impacts. This field integrates solar magnetohydrodynamics, plasma physics, and high-energy astrophysics to study magnetic reconnection, particle acceleration, and radiation processes across the electromagnetic spectrum. Research emphasizes modeling flare initiation and evolution, analyzing observations from space- and ground-based instruments, and quantifying flare contributions to space weather, including effects on the heliosphere, planetary magnetospheres, and technological systems. The area also involves developing predictive frameworks and data-driven methods to assess flare likelihood based on solar magnetic field diagnostics.
At the start of this new year, we look back at close-up pictures and solar flare data recorded by the ESA-led Solar Orbiter mission over the last three years. See and hear for yourself how the number of flares and their intensity ...
Astronomy
Jan 6, 2025
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There's a chance solar storms may bring northern lights to several northern U.S states just in time for the new year.
Planetary Sciences
Dec 30, 2024
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48
There is no question that the sun is a temperamental star, as this year's unusually strong solar storms show. Some of them led to remarkable auroras even at low latitudes. But can our star become even more furious?
Astronomy
Dec 12, 2024
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76
Scientists have constructed the first complete proton energy spectrum observed during an eruptive solar event in Martian space, deepening our understanding of the radiation environment around Mars.
Astronomy
Nov 22, 2024
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76
NASA supercomputers are shedding light on what causes some of the sun's most complex behaviors. Using data from the suite of active sun-watching spacecraft currently observing the star at the heart of our solar system, researchers ...
Astronomy
Nov 21, 2024
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36
Since ancient times, the sun has been known as a giver of light and heat, a source of life. Plants are coaxed from the Earth by its rays, bringing spring, followed by bountiful harvests.
Planetary Sciences
Nov 14, 2024
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26
An international collaboration that includes an Oregon State University astrophysicist has identified a phenomenon, likened to the quick-footed movements of an iconic cartoon predator, that proves a 19-year-old theory regarding ...
Astronomy
Oct 24, 2024
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178
A geomagnetic storm lit up the night sky in parts of the U.S. during the first weekend in October. South Africa's National Space Agency (Sansa) told reporters that the storm had originated from a solar flare "that erupted ...
Planetary Sciences
Oct 8, 2024
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87
Yesterday the sun released a huge solar flare, and it's heading toward Earth. It's nothing to worry about since it's nowhere near as large as the Carrington Event of 1859, but it is large enough to give us some amazing aurora.
Astronomy
Oct 4, 2024
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118
Solar storms may cause faint northern lights across fringes of the northern United States over the weekend as forecasters monitor for possible disruptions to power and communications.
Space Exploration
Oct 4, 2024
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128
