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Regarding Aditya-L1, the year 2026 will be like no other.

It's the first time the observatory – which was placed into space recently – will be able to watch the Sun when it reaches its maximum activity cycle.

As per scientific data, this occurs approximately once every 11 years as the Sun's magnetic poles flip – a similar Earth scenario would be the planet's poles changing places.

This period of great turbulence. It involves the Sun transition from peaceful to violent and features a huge increase in the number of solar storms and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – massive bubbles of fire that blow out of the Sun's outermost layer.

Composed of charged particles, a CME may have a mass of billions of tons and reach velocities of up to 3,000km each second. It can travel in any direction, including towards the Earth. At maximum velocity, the journey takes a CME about half a day to traverse the vast distance Earth-Sun distance.

"In the normal or quiet periods, the Sun emits a few solar eruptions daily," explains an astrophysics expert. "In 2026, it's anticipated there will be over ten daily."

Researching CMEs ranks among the most important scientific objectives for the Indian maiden solar mission. Firstly, as these eruptions offer a chance to study the star at the centre of our solar system, and secondly, since events that take place on the Sun endanger infrastructure on our planet and in space.

Effects on Our Planet and Orbital Systems

Coronal mass ejections rarely pose a direct threat to people, but they do affect life on Earth by causing magnetic disturbances that impact the weather in Earth's vicinity, where nearly thousands of spacecraft, comprising Indian satellites, are stationed.

"The most spectacular displays from solar eruptions include northern lights, being direct evidence that charged particles from Sun are travelling toward our planet," the expert explains.

"But they can also make all the electronics on a satellite malfunction, knock down electrical networks and disrupt meteorological and telecom spacecraft."

Past Solar Incidents

• The most powerful solar event ever recorded was the 1859 solar superstorm which knocked out telegraph lines across the globe
• In 1989, a part of Quebec's power grid was knocked out, leaving millions without power for nine hours
• In November 2015, solar storms disrupted flight operations, leading to disruption across Scandinavia and various European air hubs
• In February 2022, a CME caused dozens of spacecraft being lost

If we are able to see events on the Sun's corona and spot a solar storm or a coronal mass ejection as it happens, measure its heat at the source and track its trajectory, this serves as a forewarning to switch off electrical systems and satellites and move them out of harm's way.

Aditya-L1's Special Capability

There are other space observatories watching the Sun, India's spacecraft holds an edge compared to rivals when it comes to watching the corona.

"The instrument has perfect dimensions enabling it to effectively simulate lunar coverage, completely blocking the Sun's photosphere permitting continuous observation of almost all of the corona around the clock, throughout the year, even during eclipses and occultations," says the expert.

Essentially, the coronagraph functions as an artificial Moon, blocking the solar glare to let scientists constantly study the dim solar atmosphere – something the real Moon does only during eclipses.

Moreover, it's unique capable of examining solar events using optical wavelengths, enabling it to measure eruption heat and thermal output – key clues that show the intensity of an eruption if it headed our direction.

Readiness for Maximum Activity

To prepare for next year's peak solar activity period, researchers collaborated analyzing the data gathered from one of the largest CMEs recorded by the mission has recorded until now.

This event began on 13 September 2024 at 00:30 GMT. Its mass totaled billions of tons – the iceberg that struck the ship weighed much less.

Initially, the heat reached extreme levels and the energy content was equivalent to 2.2 million megatons of explosives – in comparison the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were 15 kilotons in scale each.

Although these figures seem massive, the expert classifies it as a moderate event.

The asteroid which wiped out prehistoric life on our planet carried enormous energy and during the Sun's maximum activity cycle, there may be CMEs carrying power matching greater levels.

"In my view this eruption we evaluated happened during periods of typical solar activity. Now this sets the benchmark for future comparison to evaluate what is in store during solar maximum occurs," he says.

"The learnings gained will assist in work out the countermeasures to implement to protect satellites in near space. Additionally, they'll aid achieving a better understanding of our space environment," he adds.