NASA: Current solar cycle has officially reached its maximum
For months, the increasingly active sun has been causing some impressive auroras, even here in Germany. Now the activity has reached its maximum.
The strongest solar flare of the current cycle so far occurred on October 3, here is an image from the Solar Dynamics Observatory in the extreme ultraviolet spectrum
(Image: NASA/SDO)
International researchers have determined that our sun has now reached its maximum activity and can last for up to a year. This has now been announced by the US space agency NASA, the climate research agency NOAA and the Solar Cycle Prediction Panel. At the same time, they add that this assessment does not mean that the sun will necessarily reach its strongest activity in the coming weeks. It will not be possible to determine exactly when the absolute maximum will be reached until much later. The basis for the conclusion is, among other things, the continuous counting of sunspots.
(Image:Â NASA/SDO)
Strong solar storms this year
As Lisa Upton from the Solar Cycle Prediction Panel explains, the solar activity of the current 25th solar cycle has so far slightly exceeded the expectations formulated four years ago. In recent months, strong solar storms have repeatedly caused plasma to reach the Earth and produce impressive auroras in the atmosphere. Some of these could be seen at unusually low latitudes, including repeatedly in Germany. However, such events are to be expected and nothing unusual has been observed.
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It has been known for more than 200 years that the sun goes through eleven-year cycles in its activity. In the 18th century, Swiss astronomer Rudolf Wolf calculated them back to the year 1749, the maximum of the so-called 0th cycle. Since the 1980s, activity has continued to fall and even if the current cycle is stronger than predicted, it is still weaker than the 21st to 23rd solar cycles. However, it has already surpassed the previous 24th solar cycle in terms of activity.
Solar activity not only has an impact on the frequency and spread of auroras, but phases of high activity in particular can also have a much more tangible effect on Earth. Ongoing mechanization in particular could exacerbate the effects of violent particle and radiation outbursts. "In the worst-case scenario, this could cause technical systems such as satellites to fail or astronauts to come to harm," explains the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. In some cases, satellites can even be brought down.
(mho)
