This is how NASA is preparing to protect its astronauts on Mars from solar flares – Deseret News

Solar flares are a common occurrence on the sun, which occur when the sun releases giant explosions of energy and light, according to NASA.

Solar flares have a cycle, reaching their peak every 11 years, and NASA explains that they are recorded on a classification system that divides solar flares according to their strength. The smallest ones are A-class (near background levels), followed by B, C, M and X.

This year marks the peak of solar flares, known as solar maximum, NPR reports, sharing how one such storm caused telegraph stations to catch on fire in 1859. NASA explains that powerful solar flares have broken modern sensors because of how strong they can be; but if such a flare hits Earth it can damage satellites, power grids and communication systems.

Today, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warns that strong solar flares will be hitting Earth the next several days, so some of our electrical communication could go down, NPR reports.

According to NASA, the Earths magnetic atmosphere protects us from solar flare damage. But what does that mean for future astronauts on Mars, where no such atmosphere exists?

Two of NASAs robots, the Curiosity Rover and the MAVEN Orbiter, will have the rare experience of going through a solar maximum, per NASA, and they will use this as a chance to study the solar flares affects on Mars.

Shannon Curry, a principal investigator for the MAVEN orbiter, shared that for humans and assets on the Martian surface, we dont have a solid handle on what the effect is from radiation during solar activity. Id actually love to see the big one at Mars this year a large event that we can study to understand solar radiation better before astronauts go to Mars, per the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, or JPL, at the California Institute of Technology.

During solar flares, the MAVEN orbiter and Curiosity rover would help scientists understand how many solar particles make it to Mars surface and the amount of energy they pertain, per JPL.

One specific instrument on the Curiosity rover has helped scientists learn how much radiation impacts Mars and it has let them know how much shielding from radiation astronauts could expect by using caves, lava tubes, or cliff faces for protection.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, solar flares are known to have ionized radiation, such as X-rays and gamma rays, which are known to damage satellites and interrupt radio communications.

If radiation levels get too high on Mars for humans, scientists are hoping that MAVEN and Curiosity can work together to create an early warning system that can warn other missions and decrease any radiation damage, per JPL.

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This is how NASA is preparing to protect its astronauts on Mars from solar flares - Deseret News