What Is the Sun's Magnetic Field and Why Is It Im...

What’s Happening

Here’s the thing: Learn why the Sun s magnetic field is just as important as Earth s and its impact on our planet.

Key Takeaways on the Sun’s Magnetic Field The Sun’s magnetic field impacts the movement of plasma on the sun’s surface, but it does not actually impact the amount of heat the sun emits. Solar flares, for example, are huge explosions that occur when the Sun’s magnetic fields get tied up in one another. (yes, really)

The largest of them, called X-class flares, can lead to global radio blackouts.

The Details

The magnetic field of the Sun is constantly moving and changing and, in fact, is never the same. The Sun is a highly magnetic star with lines of magnetic energy churning in all different directions.

And unlike the Earth, which is surrounded by a magnetic field that is much simpler in that it can move north and south, the Sun’s magnetic fields are complicated, according to NASA, shooting this way and that and causing everything from sunspots to solar storms to solar flares. What Is the Sun’s Magnetic Field?

Why This Matters

The Sun is a magnetic star with many magnetic fields. Its magnetism is generated because of hot plasma. It isn’t solid, it’s made of gas and hot plasma, which is part of the reason that it and gaseous planets, are so magnetic.

This could have implications for future research in this area.

Key Takeaways

• It’s also why Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are so magnetized, though less so than the Sun and their fields arise from conductive fluids inside.
• When these charged particles create motion, they also create a magnetic field.
• Some of its magnetism is shooting out from the Sun and some of it loops back into the star.

The Bottom Line

“Ions and electrons are moving around and in doing so they create a magnetic field,” says Holly Gilbert, interim deputy director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research. : A Growing Weak Spot in Earths Magnetic Field May Cause More Satellites to Short Circuit How the Sun’s Magnetic Fields Create Solar Flares The Sun’s magnetic field does impact the movement of plasma on the Sun’s surface, but it does not actually impact the amount of heat the sun emits.

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