Solar Maximum Could Help Find Answer as to Why Sun Shined Brighter in Gamma Rays

(Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Silvan Hunziker)
Solar Maximum Could Help Find Answer as to Why Sun Shined Brighter in Gamma Rays

Scientists wonder why the sun shines brighter in gamma rays. This mysterious event could probably be answered in the upcoming solar maximum.

Solar Maximum and Sun's Gamma-Ray Puzzle

Researchers found that the sun's polar regions emitted high-energy gamma-ray radiation at the previous solar maximum in 2013 and 2014, up to 10 times more than predicted, after looking over 14 years' worth of data from NASA's Fermi space telescope.

All known electromagnetic radiation wavelengths, including gamma rays, are emitted by the sun. However, this was not anticipated to be uniformly dispersed over the solar face. Currently, the team that found strong activity in the polar regions cannot explain this imbalance.

"The study of gamma-ray emissions from the sun represents a new window to investigate and understand the physical processes that happen in the atmosphere of our star," team leader and Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences researcher Bruno Arsioli said in a statement.

Every solar cycle, which lasts for about 11.5 years, describes periodic variations in the sun's magnetic activity. During the solar maximum, there is an increase in solar flares, massive plasma outflows known as coronal mass ejections (CME), and sunspots spread across the sun's surface.

The sun's increased gamma-ray brightness at its poles during the previous cycle's peak activity may be explained by the impending solar maximum of solar cycle 25, which started in December 2019.

Knowing how the sun behaves during these maximums may aid scientists in forecasting space weather, which is caused by solar flares and outflows and can potentially harm satellites and endanger human lives, in addition to interfering with Earth's power and communication systems.

(Photo: Wikimedia Commons/David Hathaway)
Solar Maximum Could Help Find Answer as to Why Sun Shined Brighter in Gamma Rays

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Solar Activity To Become Stronger As Sun Near Maximum Cycle

The Sun's magnetic field undergoes an 11-year activity cycle. It is currently in its 25th solar cycle. Like solar cycle 24, the current solar cycle began in December 2019, although scientists had predicted that solar activity would be relatively mild at the start of cycle 25. The solar maximum, or peak activity, of the present cycle is expected to occur between January and October 2024 and be much more robust than initially predicted, according to a revised projection.

It is difficult to accurately predict space weather occurrences more than a few days in advance, per Lt. Bryan Brasher, the project manager for the Space Weather Prediction Center.

They can claim that solar activity is rising and that we should anticipate seeing more auroras and other space weather phenomena based on past solar cycles. While we expect Solar Cycle 25 to stay below average, significant activity is constantly conceivable.

The Northern Lights, or aurora borealis, will appear more frequently in 2024 due to increased solar activity, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

After powerful geomagnetic storms, the aurora borealis, or northern lights, appear. The disruption may draw the Earth's magnetic field away from the globe.

When it breaks back, electrons attach to the Alfvén waves it creates. When these electrons reach the atmosphere and interact with nitrogen and oxygen molecules, they produce the northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis.