Solar storm: Rare auroral arc illuminates Ladakh sky
Solar storms, also known as coronal mass ejections, originate from the Sun’s AR13664 region which is 16 times the diameter of Earth
The dark sky over parts of Ladakh was bathed in a rare, stable, auroral red arc, creating a mesmerising crimson glow. This spectacle at the Hanle Dark Sky Reserve in the high Himalayas was triggered by potent solar magnetic storms directed towards Earth.
Since Wednesday, the Sun has been emitting powerful solar flares, leading to at least seven plasma outbursts. These solar storms, also known as coronal mass ejections, originate from the Sun’s AR13664 region which is 16 times the diameter of Earth. Each of these eruptions can contain billions of tons of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun’s outer atmosphere, or corona.
This region has been the source of several high-energy solar flares, some of which are hurtling towards Earth at a speed of 800 km/s, according to scientists at Kolkata’s Centre of Excellence in
Space Sciences in India (CESSI).
As per the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), these flares are part of the solar activity that’s increasing as the Sun nears the peak of its 11-year cycle.
The higher latitudes of the northern hemisphere were treated to a dazzling display of auroras or northern lights. Sky enthusiasts from Austria, Germany, Slovakia, Switzerland, Denmark, and Poland shared their experiences and visuals of the celestial dance on social media.
In Ladakh, the astronomers at the Hanle Dark Sky Reserve observed a red glow on the northwest horizon from about 1 am on Saturday, lasting until the early hours of dawn.
Stanzin Norla, an engineer at the Hanle Dark Sky Reserve, expressed their fortune at witnessing the Aurora activities during their regular telescope observations. He noted that a faint red glow was discernible to the naked eye along the horizon, and the event was captured in great detail by a DSLR camera at the reserve.
Stanzin described the event as a streak across the sky