Why in the News?

Astronomers from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) have developed a new method to predict the amplitude of the upcoming solar cycle.
- This discovery is based on 100 years of solar data from the IIA’s Kodaikanal Solar Observatory.

What is Space Weather?

Space weather refers to the varying conditions within the solar system and its heliosphere, influenced by the Sun and solar wind.
The main components of space weather include: solar wind, coronal mass ejections, and solar flares.
These components can compress the Earth’s magnetosphere, triggering geomagnetic storms.
This can disrupt communication, power transmission, damage spacecraft electronics, and pose threats to astronauts.

The activity of the Sun follows an approximately 11-year periodic cycle, marked by variations in the number of sunspots on the Sun’s surface.
This solar cycle influences space weather, Earth’s atmosphere, and climate variations.
Predicting the amplitude of the solar cycle is a major challenge in astrophysics, as it directly affects related phenomena and space weather.

IIA researchers discovered that the width of supergranular cells on the solar surface during the minimum year of the solar cycle is correlated with the number of sunspots observed during the subsequent solar cycle maximum.
This simple method can be used to predict the strength of the upcoming solar cycle, which is valuable for space weather forecasting.

Supergranular Cells are large convective cells on the Sun’s surface, with diameters of about 30,000 km.
These cells are part of the solar convection zone where hot plasma rises, cools as it reaches the surface, and then sinks back down in a continuous cycle.
Characteristics:
- Supergranular cells are larger than granules, another type of convective cell on the Sun. Its borders, known as supergranular lanes, are about 5,000 km thick.
- Plasma within these cells moves from the center of the cell toward the edges, where it sinks back into the Sun’s interior. This movement creates a network of lanes that can be observed on the solar surface.
- Supergranular cells are associated with the magnetic field concentrations on the Sun’s surface, often where sunspots and other magnetic features appear.

[2022] If a major solar storm (solar flare) reaches the Earth, which of the following are the possible effects on the Earth?

GPS and navigation systems could fail.
Tsunamis could occur at equatorial regions.
Power grids could be damaged.
Intense auroras could occur over much of the Earth.
Forest fires could take place over much of the planet.
Orbits of the satellites could be disturbed.
Shortwave radio communication of the aircraft flying over pola-regions could be interrupted.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1, 2, 4 and 5 only
(b) 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 only
(c) 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7