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Solar Physics

All articles tagged with #solar physics

Gravity, not a bigger engine, drives Parker Solar Probe's sun-speed record
space6 days ago

Gravity, not a bigger engine, drives Parker Solar Probe's sun-speed record

Parker Solar Probe reached a record ~430,000 mph near the Sun not primarily through propulsion, but through seven Venus gravity assists over seven years that gradually lowered its solar orbit. As the probe fell closer to the Sun, the Sun's gravity converted potential energy into kinetic energy, making it the fastest human-made object in history. The feat highlights orbital design and gravity as key drivers in spaceflight, while the mission continues to study the Sun’s corona and solar wind.

via Space Daily|
#gravity-assist#orbital-mechanics#parker-solar-probe
Sun's preflare signals mapped hours before a powerful X9 flare
space25 days ago

Sun's preflare signals mapped hours before a powerful X9 flare

Space.com reports that scientists using IRIS data captured a rare preflare window for the Oct. 3, 2024 X9 solar flare. They tracked three plasma properties—brightness, line-of-sight velocity, and non-thermal velocity (turbulence)—which began rising about three hours before eruption and showed regular oscillations (roughly 7–10 minutes and 18–21 minutes) near a boundary where opposite magnetic fields meet. About 15–20 minutes before the flare, the sun’s atmosphere became more volatile, signaling possible magnetic energy release. While the study suggests a potential precursor signature from combining these signals, it analyses a single event, and more flares must be studied before reliable early warnings can be developed. The findings were published in Solar Physics.

via Space|
#solar-flare#solar-physics#space
The Sun's Hidden Odyssey: Photons Spend Thousands to Millions of Years in the Solar Interior
space1 month ago

The Sun's Hidden Odyssey: Photons Spend Thousands to Millions of Years in the Solar Interior

Light takes about eight minutes to reach Earth, but the energy it carries was generated in the Sun’s core tens of thousands to millions of years ago. In the radiative zone, photons undergo a slow, random-walk diffusion, with a commonly cited average travel time of ~170,000 years from core to surface. The photons that finally escape the photosphere are new particles carrying energy that’s been migrating outward for a very long time, and the famous phrase “the photon you see now is 100,000 years old” is a simplification. Some analyses (Kelvin–Helmholtz considerations) push the relevant energy-migration timescale to tens of millions of years, meaning the eight-minute Earthward leg is only the final step in a prolonged solar interior journey.

via Space Daily|
#photon-diffusion#photosphere#radiative-zone
Sun Sets New Solar Record with 19-Day Radio Burst
space1 month ago

Sun Sets New Solar Record with 19-Day Radio Burst

A 19-day-long Type IV solar radio burst—the longest on record—was observed by four spacecraft (STEREO, Parker Solar Probe, Wind, and Solar Orbiter). Researchers traced the event to a large helmet streamer energized by three rapid coronal mass ejections, explaining why some solar radio bursts persist for days and aiding space weather forecasting. The findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

via ScienceAlert|
#coronal-mass-ejections#helmet-streamer#solar-physics
Sun's 19-Day Radio Burst Sets New Solar Record
space1 month ago

Sun's 19-Day Radio Burst Sets New Solar Record

NASA scientists tracked a Type IV solar radio burst that lasted 19 days in August 2025—the longest on record—originating from a helmet streamer in the Sun’s atmosphere. The event may have been sustained by three coronal mass ejections and was observed by a fleet of missions (STEREO, Parker Solar Probe, Wind, Solar Orbiter) across the inner solar system, enabling a detailed timeline. Understanding these long-lasting bursts could improve space weather forecasts and protect satellites and spacecraft.

via SciTechDaily|
#coronal-mass-ejections#helmet-streamer#solar-physics
Sun's 19-Day Radio Burst Sets New Record, Tracked Across the Solar System
space1 month ago

Sun's 19-Day Radio Burst Sets New Record, Tracked Across the Solar System

NASA and international spacecraft tracked a 19-day Type IV solar radio burst—the longest ever observed—originating from a helmet streamer in the Sun's outer atmosphere. The event, likely powered by a sequence of three coronal mass ejections, kept electrons trapped and replenished, extending radio emissions well beyond typical durations. Observations from Parker Solar Probe, Solar Orbiter, STEREO, and Wind allowed near-continuous monitoring as the Sun rotated, offering new insights for forecasting space weather and understanding large-scale solar magnetic structures.

via The Daily Galaxy|
#coronal-mass-ejections#nasa#solar-physics
CubeSat neutrino detector aims to illuminate solar core from orbit
space1 month ago

CubeSat neutrino detector aims to illuminate solar core from orbit

Space.com reports the world’s first space-based neutrino detector, SNAPPY, has launched to a ~310‑mile Earth orbit aboard SpaceX CAS500‑2 for about two years. The 3U CubeSat carries gallium‑tungsten detector crystals to catch solar neutrinos closer to the Sun, testing space-based detection technology and potentially enabling future solar-neutrino missions and imaging of solar fusion shells.

via Space|
#cubesat#neutrinos#snappy
Magnetic Avalanches Trigger Solar Flares, New Solar Orbiter View Reveals
science5 months ago

Magnetic Avalanches Trigger Solar Flares, New Solar Orbiter View Reveals

ESA's Solar Orbiter captured high-cadence observations showing solar flares arise from avalanche-like magnetic reconnection: a weak disturbance spawns a cascade of twisted field strands that rapidly reconnect, creating bright ribbons, fast plasma outflows up to ~400 km/s, and continued plasma rain after the flare, implying energy moves from magnetic fields to solar plasma and this avalanche mechanism may be common across flares.

via Gizmodo|
#magnetic-reconnection#plasma-rain#science
Debunking the Myth: Is the Sun a Dwarf Star?
science6 months ago

Debunking the Myth: Is the Sun a Dwarf Star?

The sun is technically classified as a G2V main-sequence star, often called a dwarf star, but it is much larger than what is typically considered a dwarf star. It is a yellow, hydrogen-fusing star that will eventually become a red giant in about 5 billion years. Despite its name, the sun appears yellow due to atmospheric scattering, and it is the largest object in our solar system.

via Live Science|
#astronomy#dwarf-star#main-sequence-star