All Questions
Tagged with heliophysics or space-weather
27 questions
2
votes
0
answers
59
views
NASA’s NIAC has awarded phase III funding for Diffractive Solar Sails. Demonstration mission in the works?
Diffractive lightsails use small gratings embedded in thin films to produce diffraction (which causes light to spread out when it passes through a narrow opening).
Diffractive light sails are a ...
- 27.8k
6
votes
1
answer
503
views
Why didn't SpaceX see that geomagnetic storm coming? Was this a fluke or could this happen more frequently in the future? (R.I.P. 40 lost starlinks)
Ars Technica's SpaceX loses up to 40 satellites to geomagnetic storm after Starlink launch explains that a geomagnetic storm heated Earth's upper atmosphere (circa 200 km) so much that the aerodynamic ...
- 151k
6
votes
4
answers
282
views
Why put SunRISE in the graveyard? Why will it "fly slightly above geosynchronous orbit"?
The blots.nasa.gov article NASA’s SunRISE Mission Studying Solar Particle Storms Moves Toward Launch says that the upcoming
SunRISE mission — short for the Sun Radio Interferometer Space Experiment — ...
- 151k
4
votes
1
answer
779
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If a solar flare happened during a total lunar eclipse, would the Earth block the flare from hitting the moon? And for how long?
I was making plans for a scifi story set in the aftermath of a Carrington Event-level solar flare, and I wondered if, in the case of a total lunar eclipse, the Earth would shield the Moon from the ...
- 43
6
votes
1
answer
164
views
Has space weather ever impacted spacecraft launch schedules?
Has space weather ever affected spacecraft launches, and do launch providers check it before spacecraft go to space?
I know there is space turbulence and it can influence a spacecraft underway, but ...
- 415
2
votes
2
answers
240
views
Can VLF be used to create a Mars barrier?
I just ran across some older articles in 2017 discussing how VLF radio waves created an artificial barrier to space weather. Basically how VLF improves Earth’s protection from solar radiation.
This ...
2
votes
1
answer
64
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What are the differences between various solar weather terms?
In preparation for my own possible question on solar weather, I searched for past questions on the topic. The past questions suggest that I am not the only person who is confused about the ...
- 48.4k
6
votes
3
answers
158
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Can "space weather" refer to deep space environments or only to Earth's (or another planet's) upper atmosphere?
@OscarLanzi's interesting answer and my comment there led me to read Wikipedia's article Space weather.
The article exclusively seems to only talk about effects in Earth's upper atmosphere; the only ...
- 151k
16
votes
2
answers
1k
views
What are the long term effects of Space Weathering on man-made materials?
Space Weathering is described as the type of weathering that occurs to any object exposed to the harsh environment of outer space. Unlike on Earth, a man-made vessel wouldn't be affected by rain or ...
- 889
31
votes
2
answers
4k
views
Which LEO satellite lost over 30 km of altitude in the geomagnetic storm of 13-14 March 1989?
This answer includes the following information:
During the great geomagnetic storm of 13-14 March 1989, tracking of thousands of space objects was lost and it took North American Defense Command (...
- 151k
8
votes
1
answer
507
views
Has NORAD ever experienced a catastrophic event and "lost track of" a bunch of objects?
NORAD tracks satellites for several very important reasons. From time to time an object might become temporarily mis-identified or otherwise confused with another object, these things usually get ...
- 151k
6
votes
3
answers
545
views
How can a solar storm be predicted?
Satellites like DSCOVR are used to predict solar storms.
How does that work? If the satellite is orbiting L1 and "watches" the sun, how can the signal be back on earth before a storm arrives?
How ...
- 1,646
12
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How to check, if there is currently an increased solar activity?
I've got an email, that because of the increased solar activity, more cosmic ray-s are hitting the earth. And for this reason, humans experience more stress and headache.
I know, it's not true. But I ...
- 821
2
votes
2
answers
9k
views
How Do Astronauts Not Freeze In Space? [duplicate]
I know they have systems that flow water through there suits to keep them cool. But how do they block out the coldness that is space? What materials do they have for this?
- 141
13
votes
2
answers
3k
views
How does ISS protect astronauts from Coronal Mass Ejections?
The related question's answer tells about the mitigation procedures for the duration of a 'proton storm'. In particular,
The ISS crew did receive a Solar weather warning several times and were ...
- 56k
7
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How can solar wind be supersonic?
I was reading this Wikipedia article on Heliosphere and was confused a bit:
this supersonic wind must slow down to meet the gases in the interstellar medium
How can sonic speeds exist in space? ...
- 245
8
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How are solar panels protected from the Sun?
In 2003, JAXA sent a probe, Hayabusa, to an asteroid named Itokawa. On the way to the asteroid, there was a large solar flare which damaged the probe's solar cells. I've been searching through the ...
- 7,184
5
votes
1
answer
583
views
How do solar flares and coronal mass ejections create proton storms?
Wikipedia has this to say about solar particle events:
A solar particle event (SPE), or "proton storm," occurs when particles
(mostly protons) emitted by the Sun become accelerated to very high
...
- 21.5k
5
votes
1
answer
441
views
Speed of solar coronal mass ejection
From this video, it appears that material is being flung outward from the limb of the Sun at pretty high speed. Considering that the Sun is some 1.4 million km in diameter, and at least one band seems ...
- 17.6k
14
votes
2
answers
849
views
How risky is launching a rocket during a geomagnetic and solar radiation storm?
Today's launch of Arianespace Vega rocket deploying Sentinel 2A Earth observation satellite for ESA & European Commission went ahead as planned, lifting off on June 23, 2015 at exactly 01:51:58 ...
- 76.4k
8
votes
1
answer
194
views
Can the direction of a solar storm be predicted near Earth? Will it come from one direction?
So you are in a high orbit, or Lunar orbit, or at an EML point, and a solar proton event is on its way. Does the Earth's magnetic field make it difficult to predict the direction of impact on your ...
- 21.5k
9
votes
2
answers
1k
views
How was this image of the sun taken and what does it show?
In the last few years amazing images of the sun have been around. They are from the Solar Dynamics Observatory's AIA instrument. The one below shows super-hot iron atoms. So, am I looking at field ...
- 21.5k
10
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Would working at night on the surface of Mars/Luna protect from radiation?
Radiation is often mentioned as a serious hazard to the health of astronauts and colonists on worlds without magnetospheres, I presume that the majority of this harmful radiation is the ultraviolet ...
- 4,231
13
votes
1
answer
206
views
Can change in sun's polarity affect satellites?
I recently read that the sun's polarity is going to change. Will this effect cause damage to satellites and/or affect its communication with ground stations?
- 18.1k
17
votes
1
answer
25k
views
How are the astronauts in the ISS protected from solar flares?
The Sun emits electromagnetic radiation which may consist of UV, IR, X-rays and also the charge particles that are emitted from the sun which are harmful to humans. But during intense solar flares it ...
- 18.1k
13
votes
1
answer
326
views
If I am a spacecraft operator, at what space weather activity levels do I start getting nervous?
Say I operate a satellite in LEO, and I think I have instruments on board that will be sensitive to space weather events. If I keep an eye on space weather activity levels, when do I start turning off ...
user29
16
votes
2
answers
460
views
What, if any, plans have been made for handling events like a geomagnetic reversal?
Although a substantial changes in the Earth's magnetic field (e.g., as associated with a geomagnetic reversal where the magnetic field strength may be reduced to 5% of the current strength) are rare ...
user56