A volcanic eruption from the sun last week propelled material toward Earth, slamming third rocks from the center of the solar system into debris, according to NASA.
NASA reports that a coronal mass ejection, or CME, was detected on the sun on March 12 at 11:30 p.m.
Coronal mass ejection simulations, or CMEs, show eruptions from the sun (NASA M2M Space Weather Bureau)
The eruption was on the far side of the Sun from Earth and is believed to have come from a former active region called AR3234.
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Between February and early March, the active region was toward Earth and emitted what NASA called, “intense M-class flares and a powerful X-class flare.”
A Class M solar flare is moderate in size and likely to cause brief radio blackouts, while Class X flares are major events that can lead to a global radio blackout.
These photos show another scene from August. 9, 2011, Class X solar flare appears as 335 angstroms of blue. These images were taken in light at 131 angstroms, an intense ultraviolet wavelength. (NASA/SDO)
NASA said the Moon-to-Mars Space Weather Office ran an analysis and determined that the CME was moving at 1,321 miles per second, or 2,127 kilometers per second. Because of this rapid movement, NASA rates CMEs with an R, rarely.
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And NASA said it suspects that the Parker solar probe was hit “head-on” by the explosion as it was in its closest encounter with the Sun No. 15, as it reached a distance of 5.3 million miles from it last Friday.
The day after the CME ejected from the Sun, the probe transmitted a green beacon tone, indicating that it was in nominal operating mode. Scientists are waiting for the next data download to learn more about the CME event, which NASA says will occur after the spacecraft approaches the sun.
An image of the Sun from 1997 shows the temperature of the hot corona (light color) compared to the cold surface temperature of the Sun (dark color). (SOHO (European Space Agency NASA))
This CME is called a halo by NASA because it appears to propagate from the sun in a ring around the sun. Halo CMEs occur when solar radiation aligns toward or away from Earth, depending on the observer’s location.
“Although the rocket blast erupted from the far side of the sun, its impact was felt on Earth,” NASA said. “When CMEs explode in space, they create a shock wave that can accelerate particles along the path of the CME to incredible speeds, just like surfers are propelled by an oncoming ocean wave.”
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NASA is still analyzing the event to learn more about its far-reaching effects.
Greg Weiner is the breaking news correspondent for Fox News Digital.