Giant Hole in Sun Wider Than 60 Earths, 5 Times Jupiter’s Diameter Spewing Powerful Solar Wind

A gaping hole in the Sun is so massive, spewing powerful solar wind in the solar system. Fortunately, it is rotating away from our planet.

Massive Coronal Hole in the Sun

These tremendous streams of extraordinarily rapid radiation called solar winds are being ejected directly towards Earth by a massive dark hole that has opened up in the surface of the Sun. Scientists claim the hole is wider than 60 Earths and more than five times larger than Jupiter's diameter. It is reportedly unprecedented for this stage of the solar cycle.

According to Spaceweather.com, the massive dark area called a coronal hole, began to form on December 2 near the Sun's equator and grew to a maximum diameter of about 497,000 miles (800,000 kilometers) in less than a day. The solar vacuum has been aimed directly at Earth since December 4.

Per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), coronal holes arise when the magnetic fields that keep the Sun in place abruptly open up, causing solar wind-or the contents of the Sun's upper surface-to stream out. Because coronal holes are less dense and colder than the surrounding plasma, they appear as dark patches. This explains why sunspots seem black, yet coronal holes cannot be seen without UV light.

According to NOAA, interruptions in Earth's magnetic shield, or geomagnetic storms, are frequently caused by radiation streams from coronal holes far faster than the Sun's typical solar wind. March saw the Sun's last coronal hole emerge, which unleashed the strongest geomagnetic storm to strike Earth in over six years.

In the earliest days after this most recent hole formed, experts projected it might cause a moderate (G2) geomagnetic storm that could cause radio blackouts and intense auroral displays. Spaceweather.com reports that the storm that has resulted is weak (G1) because the solar wind has not been as strong as anticipated. Yet the possibility of auroras remains.

Although the duration of the hole in the Sun is unknown, NOAA reports that coronal holes have in the past lasted longer than one solar rotation (27 days). The hole will, however, soon begin to revolve away from Earth.

ALSO READ: Saturn's Enceladus Engulfed by Thick Snow Drifts; Where Did This Icy Covering Come From?

Sun Has Tiny Jets That Expel Plasma

The Solar Orbiter spacecraft, created by the European Space Agency (ESA) with support from NASA, has discovered many tiny jets of material that last 20 to 100 seconds and expel plasma - a state of matter made up of superheated, charged particles - at a velocity of roughly 224,000 miles per hour. The jets could be the long-sought source of the solar wind.

The astronomers identified the tiny jets as emanating from a coronal hole, a feature on the Sun. In these massive holes, the Sun's magnetic field does not realign itself into the star. Alternatively, the magnetic field reaches a great distance within the solar system.

It has been widely known that these regions produce a portion of the solar wind that the Sun makes. Because there are fewer coronal holes in the equatorial parts of the Sun, solar wind from those regions tends to be slower. The Sun's north and south poles are home to most of its stable coronal holes, which produce relatively fast solar wind.