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For India's first solar observatory, the year 2026 is expected to be truly unique.

It's the first time the observatory – which was placed into space last year – can watch the Sun during the peak of its solar cycle.

As per research, it comes roughly once every 11 years when the Sun's polarity reverses – a similar Earth scenario could be the North and South poles swapping positions.

It's a time marked by intense activity. It involves our star transition from calm to stormy and is marked by a huge increase in the number of solar eruptions and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) – massive bubbles of plasma that blow out of the Sun's outermost layer.

Composed of charged particles, a CME may have a mass of billions of tons and reach a speed exceeding 2,000 miles each second. It can travel toward various directions, including towards the Earth. At maximum velocity, the journey takes an ejection 15 hours to cover the 150 million km between Earth and the Sun.

"In the normal or low-activity times, the Sun emits two to three CMEs a day," says a leading scientist. "Next year, we expect there will be 10 or more each day."

Studying CMEs is one of the key research goals of India's first solar observatory. One, because the ejections offer a chance to study the star at the centre of our planetary system, and secondly, since events occurring on the Sun endanger systems on our planet and in orbit.

Effects on Our Planet and Orbital Systems

Coronal mass ejections seldom present a direct threat to people, yet they impact our planet by causing magnetic disturbances that impact the weather in near space, where nearly thousands of spacecraft, including many from India, are stationed.

"The most spectacular manifestations from solar eruptions are auroras, which are a clear example that charged particles from Sun journey to Earth," the scientist clarifies.

"However, they may make all the electronics aboard spacecraft malfunction, knock down power grids and affect weather and communication satellites."

Historical Solar Events

• The strongest solar event in history occurred during the 1859 solar superstorm which knocked out communication systems worldwide
• During 1989, sections of Canadian electrical network was knocked out, leaving six million people in darkness for hours
• In November 2015, solar storms disturbed air traffic control, causing chaos in Sweden and some other European airports
• In February 2022, a CME caused 38 commercial satellites being lost

With capability to observe what happens in the solar atmosphere and spot a solar storm or a coronal mass ejection in real time, measure its heat at origin and watch its trajectory, it can work as a forewarning to shut down electrical systems and spacecraft and move them to safety.

Aditya-L1's Special Capability

There are other solar missions watching the Sun, India's spacecraft has an advantage over others when it comes to watching the corona.

"Aditya-L1's coronagraph is the exact size enabling it to nearly mimic the Moon, completely blocking the solar disk and allowing it continuous observation of nearly the entire solar atmosphere 24 hours a day, throughout the year, including during solar events," says the researcher.

In other words, the coronagraph acts like an artificial Moon, obscuring the Sun's bright surface allowing scientists constantly study its faint outer corona – something natural eclipses does only during eclipses.

Moreover, it's unique capable of examining solar events using optical wavelengths, enabling it to measure eruption heat and thermal output – key clues that show how strong a CME would be if it headed toward Earth.

Readiness for Peak Period

In preparation for the upcoming peak solar activity period, researchers worked together to study the data obtained from a major CMEs recorded by the mission has recorded until now.

This event began in September 2024 at 00:30 GMT. The eruption's weight was 270 million tonnes – for comparison that sank Titanic weighed much less.

Initially, the heat reached extreme levels with energy equivalent comparable to millions of tons of explosives – relative to nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were much smaller and 21 kilotons respectively.

Although the numbers seem incredibly large, the scientist classifies it as a "medium-sized" one.

The asteroid which wiped out prehistoric life on Earth carried enormous energy and during the Sun's maximum activity cycle, we could see CMEs carrying power equal to greater levels.

"In my view the CME we evaluated to have occurred during periods of typical solar activity. This establishes the benchmark for future comparison assessing what to expect during solar maximum occurs," he says.

"The insights gained will help us work out the countermeasures to implement to protect spacecraft in orbit. Additionally, they'll aid us gain deeper knowledge of near-Earth space," he concludes.