Scientists have created mini-coronal loops to simulate banana-sized solar flares in the lab to investigate how massive explosions on the sun's surface launch energetic particles and X-rays into space.
While Earth's magnetic field, the magnetosphere, helps shield life from these particles and high-energy radiation, these emissions can still trigger space weather that can disrupt communications and power infrastructure. They can also pose a more substantial threat to equipment and astronauts outside the magnetosphere, making it important to understand these emissions and the solar phenomenon that launches them.
