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What NASA’s Historic Sun Mission Today Has to Do with 2024’s Northern Lights and Eclipse
Today, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is embarking on a historic mission to get even closer to the sun than ever before. This remarkable endeavor has significant implications for our understanding of space weather and its impact on our planet.
As I wrote earlier, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has been busy studying the solar corona, the outer atmosphere of the sun that can reach temperatures of millions of degrees Fahrenheit. In a recent interview, Dr. Nour Raouafi, the project scientist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, emphasized the importance of this mission in advancing our knowledge of space weather.
One key area of focus is understanding the origins of the solar wind, which accelerates to supersonic speeds within the corona. This phenomenon has been a long-standing mystery, and Parker’s data will help scientists finally grasp what drives these intense winds.
However, this research also has significant implications for our daily lives. I recall speaking with Dr. Raouafi during an American Geophysical Union media roundtable in December 2024, where he explained that coronal mass ejections (CMEs) can have catastrophic effects on Earth’s magnetic field.
Dr. Raouafi shared some sobering insights: “CMEs clean everything in front of them, leaving a near-perfect vacuum behind them.” He continued to describe the devastating consequences when these events collide with our planet’s magnetic field: “It’s no wonder that when one of them hits our magnetosphere, it causes havoc, like the superstorms we saw in May and October.”
In recent months, I have witnessed firsthand the awe-inspiring displays of aurora borealis (Northern Lights) caused by these CMEs. The sheer scale of these events can be breathtaking, with the lights dancing across the night sky as far south as Arizona and Florida.
Now, as we head into a new year, this mission is crucial in shedding light on these phenomena. By studying the sun’s corona and the solar wind, NASA scientists will gain valuable insights to better predict and prepare for such disasters.
In addition, the data collected from Parker’s mission may also shed light on our understanding of total solar eclipses like the one that took place across North America on April 8, 2024.
Source: http://www.forbes.com
