A massive solar storm erupted last April, completely destroying part of the Earth’s magnetic field. the shape of the planet’s magnetosphere.
As a result of this unusual event, A two-lane highway was temporarily opened between the Sun and the Earth; Auroras were seen at both ends as charged particles were sent in both directions.
Focusing on that phenomenon with a new study, researchers found that magnetic waves travel through the solar wind. At a speed greater than the Alfven speed They announced that they were moving.
According to the researchers, the result “supersonic fighter jets create sonic booms in the air” It seems.
WHAT IS ALFVEN’S SPEED?
The Alfvén distance is a distance that helps us understand how electrically charged particles and magnetic fields in space or around stars interact. This speed shows how fast the waves move through materials called plasma, which contain electrically charged particles rather than gases, under the influence of magnetic fields.
Simply put, the Alfvén speed describes how quickly magnetic fields exert their influence within the plasma. This concept is very important in topics such as space weather, solar storms and stellar magnetic fields.
NASA RELEASED A STATEMENT
In a series of articles about this event published on X, NASA said that shock “like the foamy waves that form in front of a boat as it moves through the water. “ He confirmed that it was.
On April 24, 2023, auroras lit up the night sky as far south as Arizona.
This rare light show happened because a massive solar flare had reached Earth.
Scientists are now reporting that something even stranger happened during that event. ??
?? courtesy of William Frohne pic.twitter.com/wK2h9pTtdx
– NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) August 6, 2024
According to NASA, “In the present case, the magnetic field inside the solar flare was connected to the Earth’s magnetic field while it was still connected to the Sun. In this case, particles that were trapped by the Earth’s magnetism suddenly went towards the Sun. In other words, The normal unidirectional flow from the Sun to the Earth suddenly became bidirectional. This continued for about two hours, and the Earth pushed the particles back to the Sun! “
For a brief time during the storm, a two-way “highway” was created between the Sun and Earth.
In other words, the normal one-way flow from the Sun to the Earth suddenly went both ways: For about two hours, the Earth was also spewing particles back into the Sun! pic.twitter.com/Q2b1o5C9b0
– NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) August 6, 2024
WHAT ARE ALL THESE?
The particles mentioned above are mostly particles like electrons and protons. These particles are found in the Earth’s magnetosphere and are trapped by the Earth’s magnetic field.
When the solar flare’s magnetic field lines converge with the Earth’s magnetic field (a process known as magnetic reconnection), these charged particles can find a direct path to escape towards the sun, perhaps. events such as auroras or changes in space weather It can lead to
2024-08-24 13:17:00
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