Solar storm-gazing
Sep 30, 2020
3 minutes
By Professor Lisa Harvey-Smith
Solar flares are a symptom of the Sun’s magnetic field. These gigantic eruptions, or burps, from our star originate when the tangled magnetic field of a large group of sunspots suddenly ‘snaps’ and rights itself, releasing vast quantities of hot plasma from below the surface. It’s a bit like when a rubber band gets twisted and knotted, then finally breaks.
Solar flares can be seen with special filtered telescopes as soon as they happen, but
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