A recent study involving nearly 1,000 undergraduate students and physicists challenges the prevailing theory that solar flares heat the sun’s corona, the outermost layer of its atmosphere. Conducted at the University of Colorado Boulder, the research examined over 600 solar flares between 2020 and 2022, revealing that solar flares might not be responsible for the extreme temperatures of the corona, which reaches millions of degrees Fahrenheit compared to the sun’s surface, which is significantly cooler. Despite the findings, researchers suggest that “nanoflares,” small and unnoticed solar events, could still play a role, although the present evidence leans against this idea. The study’s lead author, James Mason, emphasized the incredible opportunity it provided for undergraduates to engage in meaningful scientific research, accounting for an impressive 56,000 hours of work. The initiative started during the COVID-19 pandemic when students needed an engaging research project. While they have not arrived at a definitive explanation for the corona’s heating, the study points to alternative theories, including energy transfer through magnetic field waves. The findings were published in The Astrophysical Journal and contribute to the larger discourse on solar phenomena.
