FORECASTING SOLAR STORMS

A solar storm would only be really disastrous if it hit without warning, before critical systems could be suitably protected. For this reason, an increasing number of satellites and space probes – such as the European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter – are dedicated to observing the Sun. On the ground, observatories around the world are keeping a close lookout for signs of unusual solar activity.

Solar astronomy took a huge step forward in February 2022 with the opening of the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST) in Hawaii. As the world’s most powerful solar telescope, it combines a giant, four-metrediameter primary mirror with state-ofthe-art adaptive optics which cancel out the distorting effects of the atmosphere to provide super-highresolution images of exactly what’s happening on the Sun’s surface.