NASA Spacecraft Records Solar Storm Outburst in Images

Images of a solar storm eruption were captured by a NASA spacecraft as it passed by the sun. These pictures show a fiery ejection gathering up space dust that remained from the solar system’s formation.

On September 5, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe recorded these images, and they were subsequently shared with the public by NASA on Monday. The probe had the fortune of capturing images of one of the most potent coronal mass ejections (CMEs) ever documented, as stated by the space agency.

Another first! Our Parker Solar Probe flew through an eruption from the Sun, and saw it “vacuuming up” space dust left over from the formation of the solar system. It’s giving @NASASun scientists a better look at space weather and its potential effects on Earth.… pic.twitter.com/AcwLXOlI6m

— NASA (@NASA) September 18, 2023

CMEs, which are colossal eruptions from the sun’s outer atmosphere or corona, possess such formidable power that they have the potential to disrupt Earth’s communication and navigation technologies, including the electricity grid and satellites.

NASA points out that comprehending the interaction between CMEs and interplanetary dust could enhance scientists’ ability to calculate the speed at which a CME is heading towards Earth, consequently improving the accuracy of forecasting when its effects might impact our planet.

“Two decades ago, the concept of CMEs interacting with dust was postulated, but it had not been observed until the Parker Solar Probe witnessed a CME behaving like a vacuum cleaner, clearing its path of dust,” stated Guillermo Stenborg, an astrophysicist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), which constructed and operates Parker, in a report on NASA’s website.

The Parker Solar Probe was designed to explore elements of the sun-Earth system that have a direct influence on life and society. It was launched in 2018 as part of NASA’s Living With a Star initiative, with a planned mission duration of eight years.