In a groundbreaking study led by Aisling O’Hare, a Ph.D. student at Queen’s University Belfast, researchers have uncovered significant insights into the relationship between solar flares and Earth’s atmosphere. Dr. Ryan Milligan supervised the study examining the advanced, X-class flare that erupted in 2012. The surrounding particles—Earth’s atmosphere—were found to be far more sensitive to the incoming solar radiation than previously understood. The study demonstrates, for the first time, how Earth’s atmosphere interacts with its own oscillations shortly after solar events. Our research exemplifies the increasingly prevalent interconnectedness between solar and terrestrial systems.
The study comes at an important time. Currently, the sun is in the middle of its solar maximum phase—the most active part of its 11-year cycle—causing a rise in solar flares. During this time, scientists observed that the sun emits rhythmic pulses every 90 seconds, which can significantly impact technology on Earth, including GPS systems and radio communication.
Research Findings
Based on these features, the researchers deployed a space-based satellite to detect the sun’s rhythmic pulses. Concurrently, they tracked global changes in Earth’s atmospheric density with a network of GPS satellites and ground-based receivers. They found that Earth’s atmosphere began to throb within 30 seconds after the solar pulses were identified.
Aisling O’Hare elaborated on the findings, stating, “Using a space-based satellite, we detected rhythmic pulses from the sun every 90 seconds. We analyzed the changes in the density of Earth’s atmosphere using a network of GPS satellites and ground-based receivers during this time and found that it responded with its own pulses just 30 seconds after the pulses were detected from the sun.”
The research involved an analysis of three EUV emission lines: He II 304 Å, C III 977 Å, and H I 972 Å. The study’s results were documented under DOI: 10.1029/2024JA033493 and have implications for understanding how solar activity influences life on Earth.
Implications for Technology
Given the reliance of current and emerging technologies on accurate and reliable data transmission and positioning, the conclusions of this study have far-reaching impact. Solar flares can throw off GPS systems by whole yards, or even feet. They can cause full radio blackouts, causing a complete loss of all signals. Aisling O’Hare highlighted the importance of raising awareness about these impacts.
“It’s important for us to understand the impact of solar flares on Earth as it could have knock-on effects on radio communication, satellite orbits, and GPS accuracy,” she said.
Project scientist Dr Ryan Milligan further highlighted how important this research was, calling it an important step toward understanding the dynamic sun-Earth connection. “Aisling’s work goes a long way towards understanding the sun-Earth relationship by studying them as an interconnected system, and not just looking at either body in isolation.”
A New Perspective on Solar Activity
Without this research, we would not truly appreciate the dangers posed by solar flares on our planet. It is of particular interest during periods of high solar activity. These matched pulsations in timing between solar flares and Earth’s atmosphere hint at a complex, exciting interplay that deserves deeper investigation.
Dr. Ryan Milligan remarked on the sensitivity of Earth’s atmosphere to variations in solar radiation. “This work really shows just how sensitive our atmosphere is to subtle variations in [solar radiation], although what drives these pulsations during solar flares in the first place still remains unknown.”
In fact, solar flares are now occurring nearly every day as we move through this solar cycle’s active phase. O’Hare’s study provides vital new information about the ways these cosmic events affect life on Earth. Continued research is opening up more sophisticated predictive models to better prevent and predict crashes. These models are essential to mitigate the disruptions that extreme solar activity could wreak.