In Pics: Rare Celestial Lights Seen In Ladakh After Intense Solar Storms

Rare celestial lights are seen at Leh in Ladakh as the Sun is in an active phase, throwing out charged particles towards Earth in the form of an intense solar storm. This phenomenon usually throws up a kaleidoscope of lights seen near the north and south poles, but this year the solar activity has been so intense that these lights are seen as bright red skies and can be spotted as far south as Leh in Ladakh. 

Scientists from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bengaluru and the Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Mumbai stationed in Ladakh have beautifully captured these Auroral lights in the skies in Hanle and Leh. NDTV's Pallava Bagla, who is also in Ladakh, witnessed this rare celestial spectacle.

"The Sun is currently active and there have been several intense flares in the last few months. These flares are so intense that we can witness aurora even in the lower northern latitudes such as Hanle," said Professor Annapurni Subramaniam, Director of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru.

In a statement issued by the Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), it said "For an extraordinary fourth time during the current solar cycle, intense red-coloured Auroral activity was seen from Ladakh, India, and was photographed by astronomers of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) from Hanle, Leh, and Merak on the night of 10-11 October  2024. The aurora was captured by the all-sky cameras at Hanle and Merak throughout the night. The bright red emission in the northern sky was seen easily with the unaided eye and the Observatory staff photographed it with their cameras as well."

"The All-Sky cameras at our Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO) at Hanle as well as at the proposed site of the National Large Solar Telescope in Merak, in Ladakh, captured a beautiful time-lapse video of the aurora, which started by 10:45 PM and continued to be intense until dawn", said Dorje Angchuk, Engineer-in-charge of the Observatory, which is operated by IIA. 

"Our staff at Hanle could see the aurora easily with their unaided eyes and managed to photograph it as well", he added.

"It is extremely rare to spot auroras at such low latitudes unless there are very severe geomagnetic storms," said Professor Dibyendu Nandi, from the Center of Excellence in Space Sciences India (CESSI), Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata. 

He added the Space Weather Group had predicted this storm, and highlighted the possibility of widespread auroras, as well as the enhanced orbital decay of Low Earth Orbiting satellites.

Speaking to NDTV, Dr S Somanath, Chairman, of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Bengaluru confirmed that "All Indian satellites are safe and working smoothly and have not been impacted by this intense solar storm that hit Earth."

According to scientists from the Bhabha Atomic Research Center "On October 10, Earth experienced a G4-class geomagnetic storm, triggered by a fast coronal mass ejection (CME) that erupted from the Sun. Geomagnetic storms are significant disturbances in Earth's magnetic field caused by solar activity, particularly CMEs. 

The G-scale for geomagnetic storms ranges from G1 (minor) to G5 (extreme) and a G4 storm is classified as severe. Upon arrival, the CME interacted with Earth's magnetosphere, leading to significant fluctuations in the magnetic field and resulting in a storm. The interaction between the CME's magnetic field and Earth's magnetic field facilitated enhanced Auroral activity. BARC has established the Major Atmospheric Cherenkov Experiment (MACE) telescope at Hanle, Ladakh which monitors Gamma-ray bursts.

BARC said this storm resulted in the excitation of oxygen and nitrogen atoms in Earth's upper atmosphere. This process occurs when energetic solar wind particles-primarily electrons-are accelerated along magnetic field lines toward the poles, where they collide with atmospheric atoms and molecules. These collisions excite the atoms, causing them to emit light as they return to their ground states. The excitation of oxygen at higher altitudes (>200 km) produces rare red auroras.

BARC says such storms can have severe consequences like high-frequency radio communications experiencing disruptions, affecting aviation and maritime operations. The increased particle flux also poses a radiation risk to satellite electronics. This event emphasizes the necessity for sustained monitoring and preparedness in the context of space weather phenomena. The impacts of solar storms, characterized by coronal mass ejections and solar flares, can transcend mere visual manifestations, leading to substantial disruptions in critical infrastructure and global communication systems.