The sun has been showing more activity over the past year as it approaches the peak of its 11-year cycle, known as solar maximum, expected later this year. In recent months, there has been an increase in solar activity, including class X flaresthe strongest of solar flares, and coronal mass ejections, large clouds of ionized gas and magnetic fields that erupt from the sun’s outer atmosphere.
The solar storms that reached Earth in May caused colorful auroras in places that rarely experience them, such as northern California and Alabama, and they originated in a huge group of sunspots that faced Earth. Later, that group of sunspots rotated in the direction of Mars.
Astronomers used the large number of orbiters that surround Mars, as well as the rovers that explore its surface, to capture the impacts of a solar storm on Mars firsthand and to better understand the radiation levels that future astronauts could experience on the red planet.
Solar radiation hits Mars
The most severe event occurred on May 20, after a flare X12. This solar explosion sent X-rays, gamma rays, and a coronal mass ejection toward Mars. X-rays and gamma rays arrived first, followed by charged particles.
He NASA Curiosity roverexploring Gale Crater, captured images where charged particles manifested as white, snow-like streaks in their chambers. The energy from the solar particles was so intense that the Mars Odyssey orbiter’s star chamber temporarily shut down.
Curiosity also measured radiation during the storm with its Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD). An astronaut next to the rover would have received a dose equivalent to 30 chest x-rays, a significant amount although not fatal. This was the highest radiation measured by RAD since Curiosity landed almost 12 years ago.
understand the maximum radiation What astronauts could experience on Mars is vital to planning for its protection. According to Don Hassler, principal investigator at RAD, shelters such as cliffs or lava tubes could provide the necessary shielding.
The MAVEN orbiter observed ultraviolet auroras on Mars during the solar storm. Unlike Earth, Mars does not have a global magnetic field, resulting in auroras that envelop the entire planet. These auroras are associated with the ancient magnetized crust of Mars.
Future astronauts could witness these light shows on Mars, as scientists continue to monitor and study space weather to ensure their safety on future missions, according to NASA. “This was the largest solar energetic particle event that MAVEN has seen,” concludes MAVEN’s head of space weather, Christina Lee, in a statement.
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