Why the Year 2026 Is Set to Be an Unprecedented Year for India's Solar Observation Mission

Regarding Aditya-L1, the year 2026 is expected to be truly unique.

It's the first time the observatory – which was placed into space recently – can observe the Sun when it reaches its maximum activity cycle.

According to scientific data, this occurs roughly once every 11 years as the Sun's polarity reverses – the Earth equivalent could be the North and South poles changing places.

This period marked by intense activity. It involves our star transition from calm to stormy and features a significant rise in the frequency of solar storms and massive solar flares – massive bubbles of plasma that erupt of the Sun's outermost layer.

Composed of charged particles, a CME may have a mass of billions of tons and can attain a speed exceeding 2,000 miles per second. It can head out in any direction, including towards the Earth. At top speed, the journey takes an ejection about half a day to cover the vast distance Earth-Sun distance.

"During typical or low-activity times, the Sun emits two to three CMEs daily," says an astrophysics expert. "In 2026, it's anticipated there will be over ten each day."

Researching CMEs ranks among the key research goals of India's first solar observatory. Firstly, because the ejections offer a chance to study the star in the center of our solar system, and secondly, because activities that take place on the Sun endanger infrastructure on Earth and in space.

Effects on Our Planet and Space Infrastructure

Coronal mass ejections rarely pose a direct threat to human life, yet they impact our planet through generating geomagnetic storms that impact the weather in near space, where nearly 11,000 satellites, comprising Indian satellites, are stationed.

"The most beautiful displays from solar eruptions are auroras, which are a clear example that solar particles from Sun journey to Earth," the scientist explains.

"However, they may cause electronic systems on a satellite fail, knock down electrical networks and affect weather and communication satellites."

Past Solar Events

• The most powerful solar event in history occurred during the Carrington Event which knocked out telegraph lines across the globe
• During 1989, sections of Quebec's power grid was knocked out, leaving six million people without power for hours
• During late 2015, solar activity disturbed air traffic control, causing disruption in Sweden and various European air hubs
• In February 2022, a CME had led to dozens of spacecraft failing

With capability to observe events in the solar atmosphere and detect solar activity or a coronal mass ejection as it happens, measure its heat at origin and track its path, this serves as a forewarning to shut down electrical systems and spacecraft and move them out of harm's way.

Aditya-L1's Unique Advantage

There are other solar missions watching the Sun, India's spacecraft holds an edge over others when it comes to watching the corona.

"Aditya-L1's coronagraph is the exact size that lets it nearly mimic lunar coverage, completely blocking the solar disk permitting continuous observation of almost all solar atmosphere around the clock, 365 days a year, even during solar events," says the expert.

In other words, this instrument acts like a synthetic eclipse, blocking the Sun's bright surface to let researchers constantly study the dim solar atmosphere – something the real Moon provide only during eclipses.

Moreover, it's unique capable of examining solar events using optical wavelengths, letting it determine a CME's temperature and heat energy – key clues that show the intensity of an eruption if it headed our direction.

Preparation for Maximum Activity

To prepare for next year's solar maximum, researchers collaborated to study the data obtained from a major solar eruption recorded by the mission has observed recently.

This event began on 13 September 2024 at 00:30 GMT. The eruption's weight totaled billions of tons – the iceberg that struck the ship was 1.5 million tonnes.

At origin, its temperature reached extreme levels with energy equivalent comparable to 2.2 million megatons of explosives – relative to nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were much smaller in scale respectively.

Even though these figures seem massive, the scientist classifies it as a moderate event.

The space rock that eliminated the dinosaurs on our planet was 100 million megatons and during solar peak occurs, there may be CMEs with energy content equal to greater levels.

"In my view this eruption we evaluated happened during periods was in the normal activity phase. This establishes the standard that we'll be using to evaluate what to expect when the maximum activity cycle occurs," he says.

"The insights from this will help us work out the countermeasures to be adopted to protect satellites in near space. They will also help achieving deeper knowledge of our space environment," he concludes.