NASA's satellite confirmed that holes on the Sun's atmosphere are currently facing Earth. According to a space weather forecasting site, solar winds escaping from the holes are expected to hit Earth this week.
Reports regarding the approaching solar winds were made by SpaceWeather.com. Its forecast was based on the data obtained by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO).
Taking Images Of The Sun
The SDO was a satellite mission launched by NASA IN February 2010. Its main objective is to observe the Sun and take detailed images of its surface. In the latest images captured by the SDO, dark spots on the massive star's surface can be seen. According to SpaceWeather, these spots are holes in the Sun's atmosphere, which is known as the corona.
As noted by the site, gaseous material is currently flowing through these coronal holes, which are currently facing Earth's direction. The site noted that the gaseous materials are escaping through the hole at speeds of up to 500 kilometres per second.
Approaching Solar Winds
These gaseous materials, which contain highly charged particles, turn into solar winds as they exit the Sun's corona. Since the coronal holes are currently facing Earth, the escaping streams of solar winds will end up hitting Earth.
The upcoming solar event is not expected to disrupt Earth's magnetic field or cause power outages and other electrical problems. Instead, SpaceWeather noted that the highly charged particles in the solar winds would interact with Earth's magnetosphere, causing stunning natural light show in the sky known as auroras.
Auroras Over The Arctic
Based on the orientation of the coronal holes on the Sun, the auroras will most likely appear over the Arctic region. SpaceWeather predicted that the solar event could happen from April 10 to 11 as Earth gets hit by the solar winds.
"The gaseous material is flowing from a hole in the sun's atmosphere, now facing Earth," SpaceWeather stated. "NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory imaged the magnetic canyon on April 7th. This is a 'coronal hole'--a place where the sun's magnetic field peels back and allows solar wind to escape. Gas emerging from the gap at ~500 km/s should reach Earth on April 10th or 11th."
