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Solar Orbiter has found the clearest evidence yet that solar flares develop through a process called a “cascading magnetic avalanche.” Small, weak magnetic fluctuations quickly multiply, leading to larger explosions that accelerate particles to incredible speeds.
This process produced streams of glowing blobs of plasma, which continued to travel through the solar atmosphere long after the explosion itself had passed. The discovery reveals the power and complexity of magnetic dynamics on the sun, and how they can create large-scale events that affect Earth’s atmosphere.
This process produced streams of glowing blobs of plasma, which continued to travel through the solar atmosphere long after the explosion itself had passed. The discovery reveals the power and complexity of magnetic dynamics on the sun, and how they can create large-scale events that affect Earth’s atmosphere.