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For India's first solar observatory, 2026 is expected to be truly unique.

It's the first time the observatory – which was placed in orbit recently – can observe our star when it reaches its maximum activity cycle.

According to research, it comes approximately every 11 years when the Sun's polarity reverses – the Earth equivalent could be the planet's poles swapping positions.

This period marked by intense activity. It sees our star transition from calm to stormy and is marked by a huge increase in the number of solar eruptions and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – enormous clouds of plasma that erupt of the Sun's outermost layer.

Made up of charged particles, a CME can weigh of billions of tons and can attain velocities exceeding 2,000 miles per second. It can head out in any direction, including towards the Earth. At maximum velocity, it would take a CME about half a day to cover the vast distance Earth-Sun distance.

"In the normal or low-activity times, our star launches two to three CMEs a day," explains a leading scientist. "In 2026, it's anticipated there will be over ten daily."

Studying CMEs ranks among the key research goals of India's maiden solar mission. Firstly, as these eruptions provide an opportunity to learn about the star at the centre of our solar system, and secondly, because activities that take place on the Sun threaten infrastructure on our planet and in orbit.

Effects on Earth and Space Infrastructure

Coronal mass ejections rarely pose a direct threat to human life, yet they impact our planet through generating geomagnetic storms affecting the weather in near space, where about 11,000 satellites, comprising many from India, are stationed.

"The most beautiful displays from solar eruptions are auroras, which are a clear example that solar particles from Sun are travelling to Earth," the expert explains.

"But they can also cause electronic systems aboard spacecraft fail, knock down electrical networks and affect weather and communication satellites."

Past Solar Incidents

• The most powerful solar storm in history was the 1859 solar superstorm that disabled telegraph lines worldwide
• During 1989, sections of Canadian electrical network was knocked out, leaving six million people in darkness for hours
• During late 2015, solar storms disrupted flight operations, causing chaos across Scandinavia and various European air hubs
• Recently in 2022, an ejection caused 38 commercial satellites failing

If we are able to see events in the solar atmosphere and detect a solar storm or a coronal mass ejection as it happens, record its temperature at the source and track its trajectory, it can work as advanced warning to shut down electrical systems and spacecraft redirecting them out of harm's way.

Aditya-L1's Special Capability

There are other solar missions watching our star, Aditya-L1 has an advantage compared to rivals when it comes to studying the solar atmosphere.

"Aditya-L1's coronagraph has perfect dimensions that lets it effectively simulate lunar coverage, fully covering the solar disk and allowing it an uninterrupted view of nearly the entire of the corona 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, including during solar events," says the researcher.

Essentially, this instrument acts like an artificial Moon, blocking the solar glare allowing researchers constantly study the dim solar atmosphere – something the real Moon does only during eclipses.

Moreover, it's unique that can study eruptions using optical wavelengths, letting it measure eruption heat and heat energy – crucial data indicating how strong a CME would be if it headed toward Earth.

Readiness for Peak Period

In preparation for the upcoming solar maximum, researchers collaborated analyzing the data obtained from one of the largest solar eruption recorded by the mission has observed recently.

It originated on 13 September 2024 during early hours. The eruption's weight was 270 million tonnes – for comparison that struck the ship weighed much less.

Initially, its temperature reached extreme levels with energy equivalent was equivalent to millions of tons of explosives – in comparison the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were much smaller and 21 kilotons respectively.

Even though these figures make it sound incredibly large, the scientist classifies it as a moderate event.

The space rock that eliminated prehistoric life on Earth was 100 million megatons and when solar peak occurs, there may be eruptions with energy content matching even more than that.

"I consider this eruption we evaluated to have occurred when the Sun of typical solar activity. This establishes the standard for future comparison assessing what is in store when the maximum activity cycle arrives," he states.

"The insights gained will assist in work out protective measures to implement to protect satellites in near space. Additionally, they'll aid us gain a better understanding of our space environment," he concludes.