Nasa forecasts maximum solar activity for another year
Published: Wednesday, Oct 16th 2024, 00:30
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According to the US space agency Nasa, the current phase of maximum solar activity could last another year or so. This phase normally lasts around three to four years, said Nasa scientists at a press conference.
It would therefore currently last around two years. However, it will only be possible to determine this with absolute certainty in retrospect on the basis of data. During the phase of maximum solar activity, there is a good chance that colorful auroras will once again be visible over large parts of the Earth, as was the case a few days ago, for example. However, the chance still exists even if solar activity decreases.
A few days ago, red to green veils of light could be observed in Switzerland, over the USA, over the UK and even over the Mediterranean. This natural phenomenon is a result of the sun's bubbling. Its activity fluctuates in an approximately eleven-year cycle. The colorful celestial lights are created when coronal mass ejections (CME), i.e. huge clouds of solar plasma, collide with the Earth's magnetic field. The mass ejections can generate geomagnetic storms.
©Keystone/SDA
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