The sun has entered the peak phase of the 25th solar cycle and more solar storms are expected to hit Earth soon.
On October 16, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced that the Sun is officially at the peak of its 11-year-cycle. During this cycle, and especially at its peak in the middle, the Sun can unleash immense explosions of light, energy, and solar radiation.
The Sun is officially in solar maximum of Solar Cycle 25 as presented by representatives from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA), and the Solar Cycle Prediction Panel. See the full story at pic.twitter.com/GWgw2bT8d5
— NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (@NWSSWPC) October 16, 2024
That being said, Earth might see another brilliant episode of aurora displays in the polar regions. If the storms are strong enough, the auroras could reach as far south as northern India.
Auroras are caused by the charged solar particles called coronal mass ejections (CME) when they breach Earth’s magnetosphere and interact with atmospheric gases. CMEs generally accompany solar flares – the intense bursts of energy that could be dangerous enough to damage radio communications, cause power blackouts and affect satellites in orbit.
Amazing Aurora over Iceland ✨ pic.twitter.com/8mCiniuNeC
— Earth (@earthcurated) October 13, 2024
ALSO SEE: Brilliant Red Auroras Cover US Skies After Geomagnetic Storm; Pictures Surface
The heightened solar activity results from the higher number of sunspots that form on the surface of the Sun. The image below compares the Sun during solar minimum in 2019 and the Sun close to solar maximum in August 2024.
Lisa Upton, co-chair of the Solar Cycle 25 Prediction Panel, said during a conference earlier this week, that the sunspot activity in the current solar cycle has “slightly exceeded expectations.”
“However, despite seeing a few large storms, they aren’t larger than what we might expect during the maximum phase of the cycle,” Upton said per Space.com.
According to the lead scientist at Southwest Research Institute, the maximum phase will last for another year of so before the solar activity declines.
Here is an awesome photo of the gorgeous red #Aurora from Dorje Angchuk @dorje1974 from Stakna (outside #Leh #Ladakh, 30 sec exp from phone) @ 2:45 AM!@IndiaDST @asipoec @fiddlingstars @karandi65 @lg_ladakh @utladakhtourism @doot_iia @Indus_SolPhy @cessi_iiserkol @PrinSciAdvOff pic.twitter.com/Hub9q7Urpy
— IIAstrophysics (@IIABengaluru) October 10, 2024
As for the auroras, chances are that a strong eruption on the Sun might push the northern lights down south.
In India, the aurora sightings mostly occur in northern India regions such as Ladakh. According to X user Stanzin Norla, the most recent sighting happened on the night of October 10. Notably, there are past instances when auroras coloured the skies in Ladakh. Similar scenes were witnessed by the locals and tourists about five months ago.
ALSO SEE: Severe Geomagnetic Storm Triggers Auroras Delighting Skygazers; Pictures Go Viral
(Image: X/@IIABengaluru)
