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What is a solar flare? Consequences and prediction of the phenomenon

The energy of the Sun has an ambiguous effect on our planet. It gives us warmth, but at the same time can negatively affect people's health. One of the causes of the negative impact is solar flares. How do they happen? What are the consequences of this?

Sun and solar flare

The sun is the only star of our system, which from it was called "solar". It has a huge mass and thanks to strong gravity keeps around itself all the planets of the solar system. The star is a ball of helium, hydrogen and other elements (sulfur, iron, nitrogen, etc.), which are contained in less quantity.

The sun is the main source of light and heat on Earth. This occurs as a result of constant thermonuclear reactions, which are often accompanied by flares, the appearance of black spots, coronal discharges.

Solar flares appear over black spots, radiating a large amount of energy. Their consequences were previously attributed to the action of the spots themselves. The phenomenon was discovered in 1859, but many processes associated with it are only being studied.

Solar flashes: photo and description

The effect of the phenomenon is short-only a few minutes. In fact, a solar flare is a powerful explosion that covers all the atmospheric layers of the light. They appear in the form of a small prominence, which abruptly flashes, radiating X-ray, radio and ultraviolet rays.

The sun rotates around its axis unevenly. At the poles, its motion is slower than at the equator, so twists occur in the magnetic field. The explosion occurs when the tension in the places of "twisting" is too strong. At that time, billions of megatons of energy are released. Usually flashes occur in the neutral region between black spots of different polarity. Their nature is determined by the phase of the solar cycle.

Depending on the strength of X-rays and brightness at the peak of activity, flares are divided into classes. The power is determined in watts per square meter. The strongest solar flare belongs to the X class, the middle one is designated by the letter M, and the weak one by C. Each of them is 10 times different from the previous one in rank.

Influence on the Earth

It takes about 7-10 minutes before the Earth feels the effects of the explosion on the Sun. During the flare-up, together with the radiation, a plasma is released, which forms into plasma clouds. The solar wind carries them to the sides of the Earth, causing magnetic storms on our planet .

In outer space, the explosion raises the radiation background, which can affect the health of astronauts, it can touch people flying in the plane. An electromagnetic wave from a flash causes interference from satellites and other equipment.

On Earth, outbreaks can greatly affect people's health. This is manifested in the absence of concentration, pressure drops, headaches, slowing brain activity. People with weakened immunity, mental disorders, cardiovascular disorders and chronic diseases especially feel the activity of the sun on themselves.

Sensitivity and technology. A solar flare of class X is capable of damaging radio equipment on the whole Earth, the average power of the explosion affects primarily the polar regions.

Monitoring

The most powerful solar flare occurred in 1859, it is often called the Solar Superstorm or the Carrington event. It was lucky to see her astronomer Richard Carrington, in whose honor the phenomenon was named. The outbreak became the cause of the Northern Lights, which could be seen even on the Caribbean islands, and the telegraph communication system of North America and Europe instantly failed.

Storms, similar to the Carrington event, occur every 500 years. The consequences for the life of people can arise and with minor outbreaks, so scientists are interested in predicting them. Forecasting solar activity is not easy, because the structure of our luminaries is very unstable.

NASA is actively engaged in research in this field. With the help of the analysis of the solar magnetic field, scientists already learn how to learn about another flash, but it is impossible to make accurate forecasts yet. All predictions are very approximate and report "sunny weather" only for short periods, maximum up to 3 days.

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