Scientists unlock solar patterns that could help understand space weather

According to recent research, the missing piece may be related to unusual high-energy patterns erupting from the sun’s surface.

We are used to hearing about the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, and we use sunscreen to protect ourselves from UV rays. The sun also emits more powerful gamma rays, which are the most energetic waves on the electromagnetic spectrum. Each gamma-ray photon carries a billion times more energy than an ultraviolet photon.

Gamma rays do not directly affect humans on Earth’s surface because the photons are absorbed by our atmosphere. But scientists are investigating whether some of these high-energy rays can track solar activity, such as powerful outbursts like solar flares or surface eruptions. Such intense events could cause space weather that could hit Earth, disrupt satellite operations and knock out railways or power systems.

Predicting extreme solar events will greatly improve our understanding of the sun, much like predicting earthquakes before they occur.

In a recent study, scientists found that some parts of the Sun emit more intense gamma-ray radiation than others, a surprising finding because models previously suggested that gamma radiation should be present throughout the Sun. average. The latest research has found that at the moment when the sun’s north and south magnetic fields flip, the sun’s poles emit the highest radiation.

This is to have better tools to predict solar activity, said co-author and researcher Bruno Ascioli of the Universities of Lisbon and Trieste. Perhaps we can use new information from very high energies to help our models predict the sun’s behavior.

The scientific reasoning behind this strange direction remains a mystery, the authors say. But the sun’s magnetic field may flip over in the next year or two, allowing scientists to observe the strange phenomenon instantly and collect more data to explain it.

Staring beneath the surface of the sun

Gamma rays are the king of all energies. They are produced by the most energetic objects in the universe, such as supernova explosions or neutron stars. Nuclear explosions and lightning on Earth also produce gamma rays.

The sun also emits gamma rays in several ways. When solar eruptions release gas and plasma from its surface, gamma rays are also emitted, but at relatively smaller energy levels.

A larger source of solar gamma radiation occurs when high-energy particles called cosmic rays from supernovae and neutron stars in the universe bombard the sun. When a charged cosmic particle strikes the Sun, it is deflected by the Sun’s magnetic field and returned. On its way out, it strikes gas on the sun’s surface and excites solar particles into gamma-ray photons.

Astrophysicist Tim Linden says this gamma-ray conversion may occur 100 to 1,000 kilometers below the sun’s surface, where magnetic fields are strong enough to deflect cosmic rays.

Using gamma rays from the sun, we can see thousands of kilometers below us, said Linden, an astrophysicist at Stockholm University who was not involved in the new study.That Allows you to explore what’s going on deep below the sun’s surface.

The sun’s activity is not constant. Every 11 years, our host star changes clothes and its north and south magnetic poles swap positions in what is known as the solar cycle. As the poles flip, the amount of activity on the sun’s surface changes. The Sun is least active at the beginning, called solar minimum, and most active in the middle, when the magnetic poles officially flip, called solar maximum. The sun is expected to reach its solar maximum in the next year or so.

In the new study, researchers used data collected from NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope to study how the sun’s gamma radiation changes throughout the solar cycle. They found that gamma radiation is most intense at the Sun’s poles because solar activity peaks during cycles when the magnetic field officially flips.

Ascioli said this was unexpected. This is just our new discovery of the sun.

Linden added that the discovery was surprising because the actual strength of the sun’s magnetic field did not change much over the 11-year period. During peak activity, the Sun’s magnetic field becomes more chaotic, which results in more activity such as flares and eruptions on the Sun’s surface, but the overall intensity doesn’t necessarily change.

No one has any models that show that some parts of the Sun will be brighter than others as a function of the solar cycle, but previous research has hinted at an unusual pattern, Linden said. He has shown in previous studies that some areas of the Sun are brighter than others, but this new study analyzes these trends in more detail.

Now, our model and understanding of solar gamma energy needs revision. Because this unbalanced structure occurs when the Sun undergoes a magnetic flip, the gamma rays may be related to the magnetic configuration and solar activity, Ascioli said.

The exact explanation remains a mystery, said study author and researcher Elena Orlando of the University of Trieste and Stanford University. One idea might be that cosmic rays hit different areas during the solar maximum. Or maybe there’s something special about the poles that attracts more cosmic rays during solar maximum activity. There could also be a completely different explanation.

Ascioli said this shows that gamma rays carry information about solar activity. It goes some way to opening up new areas of research into this connection.

Potential tool for predicting solar activity

Predicting extreme solar events is like predicting earthquakes. Processes below the surface begin to change and may trigger surface activity, but it is difficult to predict exactly when and where.

Particle physicist Mehr Un Nisa, who was not involved in the study, said the research helps expand our understanding of where gamma rays originate on the sun’s surface.

Previous studies have also hinted that gamma rays shine unevenly across the Sun, but this is the first to show variations during peak solar activity.

Orlando said gamma rays could help with early observations of the process of reaching the surface and provide clues about the sun’s overall conditions. For example, an increase in gamma radiation at the poles could indicate that the sun’s magnetic field is flipping and solar activity is increasing, causing more solar eruptions to potentially hit Earth.

Linden said future research could also examine how gamma radiation changes before large-scale solar flares, possibly using observations as a predictive tool, like determining whether atmospheric conditions will make it rain on Earth.

The magnetic fields responsible for modulating the high-energy particles that produce these gamma rays are also responsible for the ebb and flow of space weather, Nissa said. Regardless of whether life is disrupted by space weather, properly understanding the physics of our nearest stars can only increase our understanding of our place in the universe.

This article is hidden planeta column that explores the strange, unexpected and offbeat science of our planet and beyond.