Solar flares and Auroras

Using daily NASA updates, these simulations show near real-time solar and aurora activity occurring on the Sun and Earth.

Solar Activity

Solar flares are sudden bursts of energy from the Sun's surface caused by the intense magnetic activity in its atmosphere. Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) are massive bursts of solar wind and magnetic fields rising from the Sun's corona. They carry huge amounts of plasma and can disrupt Earth's magnetic field, causing geomagnetic storms. Solar flares reach the Earth in about 8 minutes; CMEs take 1-3 days.

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CMEs
Solar Flares
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Aurora Activity

Auroras are stunning displays of natural light in the sky, predominantly seen in the high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Created by disturbances in the magnetosphere caused by the solar wind, these shimmering curtains of light occur when charged particles from the Sun collide with atoms in Earth's atmosphere: greens and pinks from oxygen, and purples and blues from nitrogen.

 
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Enjoy these stunning NASA videos.

NASA’s SDO Captures Stunning View of April 17 Solar Flare

Stunning Aurora Borealis from Space - Ultra-High Definition 4K