Most Active Regions of Sun to Face Earth, Expect Increased Chances of Various Space Weather Events, Experts Say

As two sizable active regions of the sun will be facing Earth in the coming weeks, solar activity is expected to stay high. Experts believe that space weather events like auroras, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections are possible.

Over the next few days, the enormous active regions designated the identifications NOAA 13169 and NOAA 13170, will reappear on the east limb of the sun after having passed around its backside.

A region of the sun that has disturbed magnetic fields is said to be active. They are linked to solar storms that are explosive and produce solar flares or coronal mass ejections (CMEs), for example. Dark sunspots-a sign of these active regions-appear as the sun approaches the solar maximum when activity is at its peak during the solar cycle.

Violent Space Weather, Solar Events

Measurements of the sun indicate an increased likelihood of violent solar events, such as solar flares and CMEs, throughout this reappearance, according to the National Solar Observatory (NSO). At high latitudes, this space weather can interact with the magnetosphere, the magnetic field that surrounds our planet, to produce the stunning light displays known as auroras, but it can also have much less favorable outcomes.

Extreme space weather can interfere with GPS navigation and aircraft flying over the North Pole, as well as space technology, power grids, and communication systems.

Active Regions of the Sun

Thanks to an acoustic method known as helioseismic holography, scientists are able to keep track of active regions of the sun even if they are not yet visible to earth or found on the sun's far side. Researchers use acoustics to infer what is happening at various depths of the star because the sun appears to ring like a bell when sound waves pass through it.

This technique is being used by researchers at the Global Oscillation Network Group of the NSO to observe variations in the strength and frequency of these sound waves passing through the sun to study otherwise unseen areas of powerful magnetic fields.

Information about regions that cannot be seen is encoded in the sound waves as they resound and bounce around the sun's interior. Researchers can then use this knowledge to create maps of the far side of the sun and effectively "see" the highly active regions on the star's other side using this information. This information can alert scientists to the active regions that are about to be seen on the sun's nearside, bringing with them potentially dangerous space weather.

The sun currently has three large active regions that are facing Earth and are located in the southern hemisphere of the star. According to Space, these regions have recently produced several powerful solar flares but will soon spin around the sun's west limb and transit behind the star.

Unusually Strong Activity Cycle

The current solar cycle, which started in December 2019 when the sun's surface had its fewest sunspots-also referred to as the solar minimum-with a total of about 1.8, is currently in its fourth year. The 11-year magnetic field changes that the star experiences are known as the solar cycle, and scientists keep track of it by observing sunspot activity.

Solar cycle 25 has so far been more active than solar cycle 24, which was comparatively quiet.

According to Science Alert, since September 2020, sunspot tallies have been steadily higher than expected levels. This may indicate that, contrary to expectations, the Sun is currently experiencing an unusually active cycle.