Articles tagged with Sun
The Parker Solar Probe has discovered that the densities of dust particles around the sun vary wildly over months, contradicting scientists' expectations. This finding suggests a more complex and fast-shifting dusty environment than previously thought, with implications for understanding planet formation.
Researchers find preferential heating of heavier ions like silicon in the transition region, which is thought to be a key mechanism for coronal heating. The study provides insights into how magnetic reconnection and ion cyclotron heating contribute to the sun's super-hot atmosphere.
Researchers at the University of Huddersfield and Montanuniversitaet Leoben in Austria have developed a new aluminium alloy that resists radiation damage, making it suitable for use in spacecraft. The alloy's T-phase has a complex crystal structure that prevents hardening precipitates from dissolving under high radiation doses.
The Borexino experiment has successfully detected low-energy neutrinos from the Sun's carbon-nitrogen-oxygen (CNO) cycle, a process that produces about 1% of the Sun's energy output. This detection provides valuable insights into the CNO cycle and its role in the energy production of stars, including our own Sun.
The new data includes exceptionally accurate measurements of the 300,000 stars within the closest 326 light years to the Sun. Researchers predict how the star background will change in the next 1.6 million years and confirm that the Solar system is accelerating in its orbit around the Galaxy.
A Rutgers-led study suggests the most habitable region for life on Mars would be up to several miles below its surface due to subsurface melting of thick ice sheets. Liquid water may have been stable at great depths, allowing life to thrive through hydrothermal activity and rock-water reactions.
A team of scientists has detected neutrinos from the sun directly revealing that the carbon-nitrogen-oxygen (CNO) fusion-cycle is at work in our sun. This detection confirms the CNO cycle as the dominant energy source powering stars heavier than the sun.
The Borexino Collaboration has directly detected CNO cycle neutrinos in the Sun for the first time, providing conclusive proof of this fusion process. The researchers estimated that CNO neutrinos account for about 1% of the energy produced by the Sun.
The Borexino collaboration has successfully experimentally confirmed the Bethe-Weizsäcker cycle, a crucial component of our Sun's nuclear fusion reactions. This achievement marks a significant breakthrough in understanding solar energy production and neutrino behavior.
Scientists have successfully measured the iron lines in the solar spectrum using a laser frequency comb and HARPS instrument, verifying one of Einstein's predictions - the gravitational redshift effect. This confirms that General Relativity theory is correct and has significant implications for satellite navigation systems like GPS.
Researchers investigate how Arrokoth's pancake-flat shape emerged from the formation process of the Solar System. They suggest that the body may have started as a merger between a spherical and an oblate body, or that its shape developed gradually due to favorable orbital conditions.
A study by Washington State University scientists has identified two dozen exoplanets that could potentially support complex life. These superhabitable planets are characterized by being older, slightly warmer, and possibly wetter than Earth, with some orbiting stars that may be more suitable for life than our sun.
A WPI mathematician has confirmed a 224-year-old conjecture on the formation of solar systems using mathematical equations, revealing that ring emergence is crucial for creation. This research also has implications for climate change and humanity's place in the universe.
Researchers use NASA's IRIS mission to spot nanojets in the solar corona, revealing a potential coronal heating candidate: nanoflares. The observations confirm that nanojets are a telltale signature of magnetic reconnection and nanoflares contributing to coronal heating.
Researchers using SwRI instruments aboard the ESA's Rosetta spacecraft discovered a unique aurora at Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, revealing the comet's interaction with solar particles. The detection was made possible by integrating multi-instrument data, providing new insights into cometary auroras.
Researchers observed stellar winds around cool red giant stars using ALMA Observatory, finding disk-shaped, spiral, and cone-like structures. The team concludes that companions or exoplanets influence the shape of stellar winds and planetary nebulae.
Astronomers detect the most massive black hole collision ever observed, involving two mammoth black holes weighing 85 and 66 times the mass of the Sun. The larger black hole is considered 'impossible' due to its mass exceeding predicted limits.
Researchers at Arizona State University have developed a new strategy to harness sunlight and store it as carbon-neutral fuels. The study highlights the importance of catalysts in photoelectrosynthesis and proposes a less-is-more approach to improve energy efficiency.
A new method was developed to study fast Coronal Mass Ejections and predict the most extreme space weather events. These events can cause strong geomagnetic storms that affect space and Earth-based engineering systems.
Researchers have developed a new method to map the magnetic field of the solar corona using near-infrared observations. The technique, presented in a recent study, can provide detailed maps of the coronal magnetic field across the entire observable corona.
Researchers at Aalto University found that the quiet Sun is more active than previously thought, with radio brightenings and solar storms detected during the solar minimum period. These findings suggest that solar activity cycles may not always follow traditional 11-year patterns.
Scientists at São Paulo State University identify 19 Centaurs of interstellar origin with highly inclined orbits, suggesting they formed around other stars and were later captured by the Solar System. This discovery sheds light on the formation of the Solar System and the chemical enrichment of the Sun.
Astronomers have successfully detected a superflare on the nearby red dwarf AD Leonis, with one flare being 20 times larger than those emitted by our sun. The high-quality data from the Seimei Telescope has revealed intriguing phenomena, including an increase in high-energy electrons and unusual light patterns.
Researchers discovered that Sun-like stars create lithium later in their lives, after swelling into red giants, contradicting previous theories. This finding will help improve understanding and modeling of Sun-like stars, including their contribution to the lithium content of our Galaxy and planets like Earth.
Researchers have detected a system of super-Earths orbiting the nearby star Gliese 887, a red dwarf with conditions suitable for liquid water and potentially hosting life. The newly discovered planets are large enough to be rocky worlds and could retain their atmospheres due to the star's low activity.
Researchers identified a universal concept underlying efficient biological light-harvesting by tuning 'noisy' photosynthetic antennae networks to their environments. This approach enables optimal power conversion and minimizes fluctuations in energy output.
Researchers at KU Leuven have created a self-consistent simulation of solar flares, allowing them to calculate the energy conversion efficiency. This breakthrough enables the prediction of key aspects of space weather phenomena, including the Northern Lights.
The study uses IBEX's long record to examine how the Sun's mood swings play out at the edge of the heliosphere. The results show the shifting outer heliosphere in great detail, hinting at processes behind one of its most puzzling features.
Citizen scientist Trygve Prestgard discovers 4,000th comet in SOHO data, part of the Kreutz family of sungrazers. The comet is extremely faint and close to the Sun when discovered, making it impossible to see without a telescope.
Purdue University researchers develop a technique using sunlight to identify satellite issues, potentially reducing the risk of 'space junk'. Light curves collected from satellites or their parts can reveal structural malfunctions.
Researchers estimate 30+ active intelligent civilizations in our galaxy using new data and simplifying assumptions about life forms. The Astrobiological Copernican Limit suggests that intelligent life may exist for billions of years, giving clues to our own civilization's long-term existence.
A team of scientists at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research has detected tiny flashes of radio light from all over the Sun, identified as evidence for small magnetic explosions. These discoveries could explain the long-standing coronal heating problem, with preliminary estimates suggesting that these tiny explosions collectively hav...
The Solar Ring mission aims to study the Sun and its influence on the inner heliosphere using a novel six-spacecraft configuration. The mission will provide unprecedented capabilities, including determining the photospheric vector magnetic field with unambiguity and resolving solar wind structures at multiple scales.
Researchers have made significant progress in understanding plasma behavior at the edge of fusion facilities, which could help achieve fusion power. The Gkeyll code simulates turbulent fluctuations and reduces particle flux near the plasma edge, potentially increasing efficiency.
Cornell University astronomers have developed a practical model to tease out climate clues for potentially habitable exoplanets. By analyzing the effects of planetary surface color and light from its host star, they can calculate a climate, providing valuable insights into the detectable spectra of Earth-like planets.
Comet SWAN was first spotted in April 2020 using data from SOHO's Solar Wind Anisotropies instrument, releasing huge amounts of water into space. It is the 3,932nd comet discovered using SOHO data and will make its closest approach to Earth on May 13 at a distance of about 53 million miles
The James Webb Space Telescope will survey the Trapezium Cluster in the Orion Nebula to understand how young stars and planets form. The team will study the distribution of masses, planet formation phases, and jets from young stars, shedding light on stellar nursery riddles.
University of Wisconsin-Madison physicists have provided an explanation for the discrepancy in solar wind temperature. By applying mirror machine theory, they found that the hot electrons stream from the sun to large distances, losing energy slowly and distributing it to trapped particles.
Researchers analyzed data from 224 stars to understand the interplay between rotation and convection in determining a star's activity level. The study found that turbulent convection plays a crucial role in explaining the behavior of main-sequence and evolved stars, contradicting previous models.
Astronomers using ALMA captured the moment when an old star starts to alter its environment, ejecting high-speed bipolar gas jets. The team's findings help scientists understand how complex shapes of planetary nebulae are formed.
Scientists develop flexible bio-butterfly-wing that converts natural sunlight into a flapping motion, producing a frequency exceeding actual butterfly wings. The device demonstrates potential applications in flying animal robots and solar energy harvesting.
A team of scientists using the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) radio telescope has detected radio waves from exoplanets interacting with their star's magnetic field, which can heat and erode a planet's atmosphere. The discovery paves the way for novel ways to probe exoplanet environments and determine habitability.
Emerging technologies are opening a new era in SETI research, with innovative approaches expanding beyond traditional radio signal searches. New systems will detect technosignatures, such as laser emissions or atmospheric chemicals, indicating the presence of extraterrestrial technologies.
According to a University of Warwick astronomer, the majority of stars in the universe will become luminous enough to blast surrounding asteroids into successively smaller fragments. This process will be triggered by the YORP effect, which creates an imbalance that spins up orbiting asteroids until they break apart.
A SwRI-led team used data from NASA's Parker Solar Probe to identify low-energy particles near the Sun, likely originating from solar wind interactions beyond Earth orbit. The particles are thought to be created by stream interaction regions and can pose a radiation threat to space travelers and technology.
Researchers observed solar energetic particle events and found that pre-accelerated particles build up in front of coronal mass ejections, creating a new phase of the energization process critical for radiation hazards. The study highlights the complex interplay between flares, particle populations and CMEs.
A WVU engineer is developing a new model to improve understanding of energy transfer between the sun's solar wind and Earth's magnetosphere. The goal is to create more accurate space weather forecasts to prevent devastating effects on power grids and technology.
A new analysis of the Curious Marie meteorite chunk reveals the presence of presolar silicon carbide grains, which were thought to be too fragile to have endured the high-temperature conditions near the sun's birth. This finding forces a revision in how scientists understand the environment in the early solar nebula.
Astronomers using TESS data have discovered that Alpha Draconis, a well-studied binary star system, regularly undergoes eclipses. The brief eclipses last only six hours and provide an opportunity to measure the masses and sizes of both stars with high accuracy.
Scientists observe a new type of magnetic explosion, known as forced reconnection, triggered by a solar eruption. This discovery confirms a decade-old theory and may help predict space weather and understand the Sun's atmosphere.
The Parker Solar Probe has returned significant data on the Sun's atmosphere, revealing insights into the solar wind and its effects on space weather. The probe's findings have shed light on magnetic disturbances in the solar wind and the processes that heat the Sun's outer atmosphere.
The Illinois-led project aims to provide a transformative leap in revealing the sun's corona, an aura of plasma surrounding stars. The distributed telescope will utilize novel technologies like precision formation flying and diffractive optics for breakthroughs in space imaging.
Researchers have discovered a new model explaining why our planet has a higher concentration of stardust from red giant stars compared to other bodies in the solar system. The study, published in Nature Astronomy, suggests that the Earth's unique mix of elements was formed during its formation around the Sun.
The Parker Solar Probe mission has unveiled a surprisingly chaotic world within the sun's corona, characterized by rogue plasma waves, flipping magnetic fields, and distant solar winds. The findings have significant implications for space weather forecasting and our understanding of the sun's behavior.
The Parker Solar Probe has mapped the source of the slow solar wind to coronal holes on the sun's surface, which are cooler and less dense than surrounding corona. The probe also detected switchbacks in the magnetic field that may accelerate particles toward Earth, posing potential damage to electrical grids and orbiting satellites.
The Parker Solar Probe has discovered new evidence on how the solar wind is accelerated away from the Sun's surface, finding that bursty 'spikes' originate in holes near the equator and are generated by magnetic reconnection. The probe also measured a sideways speed of the solar wind, which contradicts previous predictions.
The Parker Solar Probe has completed three passes through the Sun's atmosphere, revealing new information about the material and particles that speed away from the star. The data shows a complicated, active system with quick reversals in the magnetic field and sudden, faster-moving jets of material.
New data from NASA's Parker Solar Probe reveals that energetic particles hurtling out of the sun are more varied and numerous than previously thought, according to results from the Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun instrument suite. This discovery could provide early warnings for solar storms and improve space weather forecasts.
Astronomers can now use a high-resolution spectral field guide to detect signs of life on Proxima b and Trappist-1e, two potential habitable exoplanets. The guide, developed by Cornell University student Zifan Lin, will aid in the exploration of these worlds' atmospheres using next-generation telescopes like the Extremely Large Telescope.
A new machine learning tool can analyze massive amounts of satellite data to detect significant features for space weather. The algorithm identifies patterns that humans may miss, enabling faster and more accurate forecasts.