Solar Storm

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on Feb. 3.Craig Bailey/The Associated Press SpaceX’s newest fleet of satellites is falling out of orbit after being struck by a solar storm. Up to 40 of the 49 small satellites launched last week have…

SpaceX's most recent batch of Starlink satellites has been severely impacted by a solar storm that struck Earth's magnetic field on Friday. Why it matters: Starlink — SpaceX's satellite internet venture — is expected to be a major source of revenue for the company, with hundreds of satellites already launched…

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX’s newest fleet of satellites is tumbling out of orbit after being struck by a solar storm. Up to 40 of the 49 small satellites launched last week have either reentered the atmosphere and burned up, or are on the verge of doing so, the…

A Falcon 9 rocket climbs into space Feb. 3 with 49 Starlink internet satellites. Credit: Stephen Clark / Spaceflight Now SpaceX says the effects of a solar storm will destroy as many as 40 of 49 new Starlink internet satellites launched from Florida last week. Some of the satellites have…

An extreme solar storm struck the Earth around 10,000 years ago during what was supposed to be one of the sun's quiet periods, according to a study. The sun produces a powerful magnetic field which varies over the course of roughly 11-year-long cycles. At the end of these periods, the…

Through analysis of ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica, a research team led by Lund University in Sweden has found evidence of an extreme solar storm that occurred about 9,200 years ago. What puzzles the researchers is that the storm took place during one of the sun’s more quiet phases…

Home News A massive solar flare (or coronal mass ejection) erupts out of the sun in 2017. (Image credit: NASA) An extremely powerful solar storm pummeled our planet 9,200 years ago, leaving permanent scars on the ice buried deep below Greenland and Antarctica. A new study of those ancient ice…

During solar storms, the Sun expels large amounts of energetic particles that can react with the atmosphere of Earth and produce cosmogenic isotopes such as carbon-14 (14C), beryllium-10 (10Be) and chlorine-36 (36Cl). In new research, an international team of scientists measured the amounts of 10Be and 36Cl isotopes in ice…

Through analysis of ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica, a research team led by Lund University in Sweden has found evidence of an extreme solar storm that occurred about 9,200 years ago. What puzzles the researchers is that the storm took place during one of the sun's more quiet phases…

Home News A solar storm that erupted from the sun on Monday (Dec. 20) may boost northern lights displays around the north pole just ahead of Santa's trip this weekend, the U.K. Met Office space weather forecasting center said Wednesday (Dec. 22). The solar storm was caused by a coronal…