Solar coronal emissions

Visualization: Solar coronal mass ejections at the Earth scale.

Coronal mass ejections are cosmic phenomena in which the Sun ejects huge volumes of plasma and magnetic fields into space.

They occur because of intense activity on the solar surface, such as solar flares and solar storms.

Each coronal mass ejection from the Sun can contain up to 10 billion tons of matter.

The ejection travels through space at an average speed of 400 kilometers per second (but there are faster ones, up to 2000 km/s).

If such an emission is directed toward Earth, it will reach our planet in one to three days.

Magnetic storms caused by coronal ejections can disrupt electronics and communications, cause the northern lights to go out, and damage electrical systems and satellites.