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NARRATOR: There's a
violent star at the center
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of our solar system.
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The immense power, the
roiling, boiling surface,
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the massive plumes.
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It's ridiculous.
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NARRATOR: And our
planet is at its mercy.
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There are explosions and
big giant eruptions of plasma
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that head straight to Earth.
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We have to understand these
better to protect ourselves.
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NARRATOR: The Sun is a churning
cauldron of nuclear reactions.
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Revealing its inner workings
was once mission impossible.
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But not anymore.
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We've recruited this
network of spies, if you will.
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We've built a fleet
of spacecraft that
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monitor the Sun 24 hours a day.
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NARRATOR: With the Sun
under close surveillance,
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we just might have what it
takes to defend our planet.
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[explosion]
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September 6, 2017.
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A flash of ultraviolet and
X-ray light erupts from the Sun,
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sending a burst of
radiation toward Earth.
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We call it a solar flare.
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Flares are huge explosions
on the surface of the Sun,
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throwing light out
into the solar system
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and absolutely baking
anything in its path.
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These are really powerful
events erupting from the Sun.
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And we are fundamentally
in the line of fire.
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NARRATOR: The flare
up is so intense it
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causes radio blackouts
across the side
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of the Earth facing the Sun.
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And the timing could
not have been worse.
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The problem was
at this time, there
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were hurricanes in the Atlantic
bearing down on the Caribbean.
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And there were people trying to
get in there and rescue folks.
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NARRATOR: Radio communication
between disaster relief teams
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goes down for most of the day.
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Space weather and Earth weather
combined to create chaos.
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HAKEEM OLUSEYI: It's not
just an academic exercise.
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Your very lifestyle
depends on understanding
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how the Sun behaves.
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We need to be able
to predict what
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the Sun is going to do next.
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And in order to do that, we
need to have eyes on the Sun,
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as many eyes as we can get.
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RADIO VOICE: 3, 2, 1.
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NARRATOR: That's why NASA has
put together an elite unit.
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RADIO VOICE: We have ignition.
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And we have liftoff.
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NEWSCASTER VOICES: Liftoff.
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And liftoff.
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On an international mission
of the solar physics.
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NARRATOR: A fleet of
daring spacecraft.
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We humans have come a long way.
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If you go back a
few thousand years,
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people were worshipping the Sun.
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And today, we've built
a fleet of spacecraft
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that monitor the
Sun 24 hours a day,
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observing it from
every angle, predicting
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what it's going to do next.
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That's nuts.
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NARRATOR: Leading
the pack is the Solar
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Dynamics Observatory, or SDO.
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It keeps a telescopic
eye on flares blasting
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out from the Sun's surface.
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24 hours a day, the
probe is on the lookout.
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It's constantly vigilant.
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PHIL PLAIT: It looks
at the Sun and a lot
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of different wavelengths
in exquisite detail
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so that we can see exactly
what sort of high-energy events
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are happening on the Sun.
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NARRATOR: The record
for the longest service
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goes to SOHO, our sentinel
monitoring the Sun
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and its faint outer atmosphere.
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PHIL PLAIT: The
Solar and Heliosphere
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Observatory, or SOHO, is the
old hand at studying the Sun.
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It's been up there for
25 years observing,
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not just the Sun itself, but
the environment around it.
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NINA LANZA: Instead of
looking directly at it,
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it actually blocks
out most of the lights
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that we can see all these
beautiful structures
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that surround the Sun.
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NARRATOR: And then
there's the new recruit...
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The Parker Solar Probe.
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Our scout going deep
behind enemy lines.
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PAUL M. SUTTER: The
Parker Solar Probe
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is going to give us the
closest look at the Sun
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that we have ever had in
the history of humanity.
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DAN DURDA: We're flying
so close to the Sun,
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we're flying through the
gases of its atmosphere.
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NARRATOR: 29 other
craft make up the fleet,
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each with their
own role to play.
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PHIL PLAIT: This
fleet of spacecraft
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that we have, the overall
mission is to observe the Sun
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scientifically, learn about its
behavior, but also importantly,
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to learn about the effects
that it has on Earth.
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NARRATOR: Our look-out
probe, the Solar
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Dynamics Observatory, or
SDO, spots something hellish.
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PHIL PLAIT: Today's
forecast for the Sun
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is predicted to be 10,000
degrees Fahrenheit with winds
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of up to 600 miles per second.
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And a pretty decent
chance of rain.
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You don't want to
be in this rainstorm
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because your umbrella
isn't going to help you.
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Solar rain isn't water.
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It's plasma.
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Hot plasma.
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NARRATOR: Rather than a
solid, liquid, or gas,
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the entire Sun is made up of a
strange fourth state of matter.
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Plasma.
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MICHELLE THALLER: Plasma is
just simply gas that's very hot.
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So hot it's lost
some of its electrons
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and become electrically charged.
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And the wonderful
thing about plasma
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is that once it has
that electric charge,
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you can direct it
with a magnetic field.
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NARRATOR: And the Sun has the
most powerful magnetic field
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in the solar system.
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It twists and flows
through the entire star.
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PHIL PLAIT: The
Sun's magnetic field
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is incredibly complicated.
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There are lots of loops
of magnetic lines coming
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out of the Sun's surface.
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GIBOR BASRI: As you
go above the surface,
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the magnetic field begins to
control where the gas can go,
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and you get these beautiful
loops and other structures
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above the Sun that
are just showing you
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where the magnetic field is.
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NARRATOR: The SDO spacecraft's
jaw-dropping videos
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of rain on the Sun show
plasma flowing along
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huge looping magnetic field
lines that have punched
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through the Sun's surface.
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PHIL PLAIT: Because the
surface of the Sun is a plasma,
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and these loops of magnetic
fields are coming out of it,
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it draws that plasma up
which then cools and rains
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down as a plasma rain.
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NARRATOR: Tracking these
loops of magnetic field
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and plasma could help
explain solar flares.
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And it could give
us some warning.
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September 2017.
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Minutes before the devastating
mid-hurricane radio blackout,
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our solar lookouts
spotted an explosion
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on the surface of the Sun.
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PHIL PLAIT: Suddenly you have
this tremendous flow of energy
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and an explosive release of it.
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And we call this a solar flare.
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This is SDO's specialty
of observation.
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NARRATOR: The craft
tracked the magnetic loops
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above the Sun's surface.
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They were highly unstable.
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SDO takes very detailed pictures
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of where the flows are.
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You can actually see gas
flowing from one place.
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You can see the magnetic loops.
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This magnetic flux loops
are kind of like wires
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carrying electricity.
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When they're on their
own they're fine.
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But if they get too close, they
can connect and short circuit.
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And then you get a
tremendous release of energy.
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The Ghostbusters were
really on to something.
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Don't cross the streams.
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NARRATOR: The contact between
magnetic loops released an epic
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explosion of high-energy light.
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This radiation altered
our planet's atmosphere.
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Radio waves jammed,
causing blackouts
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at the worst possible moment.
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PHIL PLAIT: Solar flares
are happening on the Sun
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90 million miles away.
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Who cares, right?
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Well, think of it this way.
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A really good solar
flare could be
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the equivalent of,
oh, say 10 million
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hydrogen bonds going off.
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How's that sound?
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Solar flares happen a lot.
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And they do affect us.
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They have affected
us in the past.
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And they will again
in the future.
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NARRATOR: But the Sun's
twisting magnetic fields
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do more than just disrupt
our communications.
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And when we see
flares, we've got
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to keep an eye out on those.
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But sometimes, there's
something even bigger.
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NARRATOR: The Sun launches
huge clouds of plasma
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across the solar system.
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PHIL PLAIT: All of
that material can
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come to the Earth and
really mess things up here...
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Blow out our power grid, destroy
our satellites, even physically
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harm our astronauts in orbit.
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NARRATOR: Can the solar
fleet safeguard Earth?
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November 5, 2018.
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An explosive cloud
of plasma hits
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the Parker Solar Probe
as it orbits just
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15 million miles from the Sun.
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We have this fleet of spacecraft
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out there viewing the Sun.
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And they are also under
attack by the Sun.
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There are explosions
coming from its surface.
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Is not just light, but
explosions of hot plasma.
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And the Parker Solar
Probe got blasted.
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And yet it survived.
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NARRATOR: A huge
blast of high-energy
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charged particles launches
into the solar system
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at millions of miles an hour.
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A coronal mass ejection.
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00:10:48,848 --> 00:10:52,117
But our solar scouts is
prepared for the onslaught.
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PHIL PLAIT: The
Parker Solar Probe
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gets very close to the Sun.
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And it has a heat
shield to protect it.
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But if it gets hit by a
coronal mass ejection,
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it has to be protected
against that as well.
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And so it's been
radiation hardened
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to survive such an impact.
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NARRATOR: Could these blasts
pose a danger to our planet?
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A coronal mass
ejection accelerates
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subatomic particles.
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00:11:15,474 --> 00:11:17,342
And it's not a little
bit of particles.
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It could be up to a
billion tons of them
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00:11:20,479 --> 00:11:23,782
screaming across the solar
system at high speed.
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00:11:23,883 --> 00:11:27,018
And this is something we
need to take very seriously.
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NARRATOR: To understand these
dangerous blasts of plasma, we
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have to look at their source...
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An area around the Sun
known as the corona.
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PHIL PLAIT: The Sun's corona
is kind of like its atmosphere.
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You can think of the Sun
itself as being a ball of gas.
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00:11:46,772 --> 00:11:50,475
And then outside of that is this
ethereally thin gas stretching
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00:11:50,576 --> 00:11:51,743
out for millions of miles.
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NARRATOR: The corona
is a difficult thing
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00:11:55,247 --> 00:11:58,483
to study because the
surface of the Sun
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is so bright it blocks our view.
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We can only see the corona
during a total solar eclipse,
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when the moon blocks
the Sun's bright glare.
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Astronomers, though,
we're impatient.
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00:12:13,065 --> 00:12:15,467
We don't want to have to wait
for a total solar eclipse,
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which only happens
once or twice a year.
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00:12:17,870 --> 00:12:20,638
So we figured out a way
to make an artificial one.
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00:12:20,740 --> 00:12:21,973
And it's really simple.
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NARRATOR: One member of the
solar fleet has it covered.
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00:12:27,680 --> 00:12:32,751
Our solar sentinel, SOHO,
creates its own eclipse
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00:12:32,852 --> 00:12:36,488
by obscuring the blinding
Sun with a circular plate
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00:12:36,589 --> 00:12:37,989
in front of the probe's camera.
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Sometimes the best solution
is the simplest solution.
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00:12:42,795 --> 00:12:45,730
You know, instead of trying
to make a sensor that could
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00:12:45,831 --> 00:12:49,534
actually see the full dynamic
range of the Sun's light,
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00:12:49,635 --> 00:12:51,936
why not just block out the
light that we don't need?
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NARRATOR: In July
2012, SOHO spotted
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00:12:57,743 --> 00:13:00,011
a huge chunk of
the corona blasting
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00:13:00,112 --> 00:13:01,646
off into the solar system.
248
00:13:04,150 --> 00:13:08,486
Seconds earlier, another probe
monitoring the solar surface
249
00:13:08,587 --> 00:13:10,088
spotted a bright flare.
250
00:13:12,258 --> 00:13:14,893
Were these events connected?
251
00:13:14,994 --> 00:13:16,494
GIBOR BASRI: If
a flare goes off,
252
00:13:16,595 --> 00:13:18,329
it can disrupt those loops.
253
00:13:18,430 --> 00:13:20,632
And if you get the right
kind of disruption,
254
00:13:20,733 --> 00:13:22,967
the whole thing
can just blow open.
255
00:13:23,068 --> 00:13:25,036
And then you have
a tremendous amount
256
00:13:25,137 --> 00:13:28,606
of billions of tons
of hydrogen blown
257
00:13:28,707 --> 00:13:31,176
off into interplanetary space.
258
00:13:31,277 --> 00:13:33,011
And that's a coronal
mass ejection.
259
00:13:35,781 --> 00:13:39,050
NARRATOR: Coronal mass ejections
are solar flares on steroids.
260
00:13:40,653 --> 00:13:42,887
If a solar flare
was a firecracker,
261
00:13:42,988 --> 00:13:45,356
coronal mass ejection is
more like an atom bomb.
262
00:13:52,498 --> 00:13:56,100
NARRATOR: And if a coronal
mass ejection comes our way,
263
00:13:56,168 --> 00:13:58,036
it hits hard.
264
00:13:58,137 --> 00:14:00,471
The first thing it
does is it compresses
265
00:14:00,573 --> 00:14:02,006
Earth's magnetic field.
266
00:14:02,107 --> 00:14:04,308
And then it wraps
around the Earth.
267
00:14:04,376 --> 00:14:07,612
And this causes the magnetic
field itself to rearrange,
268
00:14:07,713 --> 00:14:10,415
reconnect, and
streams of particles
269
00:14:10,516 --> 00:14:13,618
travel down those magnetic
fields toward our poles
270
00:14:13,719 --> 00:14:15,353
and impact the atmosphere.
271
00:14:15,454 --> 00:14:16,688
Our shields are up.
272
00:14:16,789 --> 00:14:19,190
But they are able to
penetrate our shields.
273
00:14:19,291 --> 00:14:22,160
Our shield being our
own magnetic field.
274
00:14:22,261 --> 00:14:24,028
NARRATOR: Once they
breach our defenses,
275
00:14:24,129 --> 00:14:27,765
the particles of a coronal
mass ejection can wreak havoc.
276
00:14:30,669 --> 00:14:34,739
In August of 1972, tensions
were running high in Vietnam.
277
00:14:36,609 --> 00:14:40,912
[bombs exploding]
278
00:14:41,013 --> 00:14:43,915
Two dozen sea mines
detonated at the same time
279
00:14:44,016 --> 00:14:45,783
when their magnetic
sensors were tripped.
280
00:14:45,885 --> 00:14:49,387
A satellite was lost because
of the electromagnetic pulse
281
00:14:49,488 --> 00:14:50,989
that ripped through it.
282
00:14:51,090 --> 00:14:53,424
And an Air Force sensor detected
283
00:14:53,525 --> 00:14:55,693
what looked like a
nuclear explosion
284
00:14:55,794 --> 00:14:57,729
somewhere here on the planet.
285
00:14:57,830 --> 00:14:59,297
NARRATOR: Fortunately,
scientists
286
00:14:59,398 --> 00:15:00,932
quickly found the real culprit.
287
00:15:03,335 --> 00:15:05,370
A coronal mass
ejection had ripped
288
00:15:05,471 --> 00:15:07,338
through the Earth's
magnetic field
289
00:15:07,439 --> 00:15:08,806
and triggered magnetic sensors.
290
00:15:11,176 --> 00:15:13,511
The crisis soon de-escalated.
291
00:15:15,881 --> 00:15:18,616
PHIL PLAIT: The Sun is
an immense ball of plasma
292
00:15:18,717 --> 00:15:21,586
860,000 miles across.
293
00:15:21,687 --> 00:15:23,821
We are not going to be
able to stop it from doing
294
00:15:23,923 --> 00:15:25,356
whatever it wants to do.
295
00:15:25,457 --> 00:15:29,994
What we can do is learn to
predict what's going to happen.
296
00:15:30,095 --> 00:15:31,229
So we're doing that now.
297
00:15:36,201 --> 00:15:38,069
NARRATOR: Our new fleet
of solar observers
298
00:15:38,170 --> 00:15:39,537
are our first line of defense.
299
00:15:43,642 --> 00:15:44,742
PHIL PLAIT: The Sun
is a little over
300
00:15:44,843 --> 00:15:46,477
90 million miles from Earth.
301
00:15:46,578 --> 00:15:48,479
It takes light a little
over eight minutes
302
00:15:48,580 --> 00:15:50,148
to get from there to here.
303
00:15:50,249 --> 00:15:53,184
As rapidly as a coronal
mass ejection is traveling,
304
00:15:53,285 --> 00:15:55,987
it still takes a few
days to get here.
305
00:15:58,557 --> 00:16:01,993
We can watch the Sun to see
is there going to be an event,
306
00:16:02,094 --> 00:16:03,394
or is an event starting?
307
00:16:03,495 --> 00:16:05,229
And these satellites
can then tell
308
00:16:05,331 --> 00:16:06,798
us, hey, you better be careful.
309
00:16:06,899 --> 00:16:08,900
You might need to batten
down the hatches on Earth.
310
00:16:12,304 --> 00:16:13,938
NARRATOR: But there
may be an earlier clue
311
00:16:14,039 --> 00:16:15,373
the fleet can watch out for.
312
00:16:16,742 --> 00:16:21,012
Vast, dark regions moving
across the solar surface
313
00:16:21,113 --> 00:16:21,779
called sunspots.
314
00:16:23,582 --> 00:16:24,682
HAKEEM OLUSEYI: We
know that this is
315
00:16:24,783 --> 00:16:26,617
the wind up before the release.
316
00:16:26,719 --> 00:16:28,619
This thing is getting
ready to blow.
317
00:16:41,333 --> 00:16:45,069
NARRATOR: In March of
1989, a solar eruption
318
00:16:45,170 --> 00:16:50,641
caused blackouts across
Canada and malfunctions
319
00:16:50,743 --> 00:16:51,943
on board the space shuttle.
320
00:16:53,278 --> 00:16:55,013
RADIO VOICE: We've been
seeing some erratic pressure
321
00:16:55,114 --> 00:16:58,282
signatures out of tank 3, as
well as some manifold pressure
322
00:16:58,384 --> 00:16:59,517
spikes in that system.
323
00:17:01,453 --> 00:17:03,187
NARRATOR: 11 years
later, the Sun
324
00:17:03,288 --> 00:17:06,557
emitted a flare that was
so powerful it blinded
325
00:17:06,658 --> 00:17:07,759
the solar fleet's sensors.
326
00:17:10,462 --> 00:17:13,197
11 years after
that, the Earth had
327
00:17:13,298 --> 00:17:15,933
a near-miss with the most
powerful coronal mass
328
00:17:16,035 --> 00:17:17,335
ejection ever recorded.
329
00:17:21,073 --> 00:17:23,307
The Sun has a very
predictable, but actually quite
330
00:17:23,409 --> 00:17:25,343
mysterious cycle of activity.
331
00:17:25,444 --> 00:17:27,779
It gets very, very
active every 11 years.
332
00:17:27,880 --> 00:17:30,848
And then it settles back down
to more of a peaceful existence.
333
00:17:32,418 --> 00:17:34,419
NARRATOR: This 11-year
cycle has astronomers
334
00:17:34,520 --> 00:17:35,486
scratching their heads.
335
00:17:37,489 --> 00:17:40,525
One thing we do know is
that violent solar events
336
00:17:40,626 --> 00:17:44,595
seem to be preceded by dark
patches on the solar surface.
337
00:17:46,732 --> 00:17:48,199
Sunspots.
338
00:17:48,300 --> 00:17:50,535
HAKEEM OLUSEYI: Sunspots are
large areas on the surface
339
00:17:50,636 --> 00:17:52,537
of the Sun, much
bigger than the Earth,
340
00:17:52,638 --> 00:17:57,008
that are caused by incredibly
strong magnetic fields
341
00:17:57,109 --> 00:17:58,643
disrupting the flow of plasma.
342
00:18:00,245 --> 00:18:02,814
NARRATOR: And every 11
years, these dark spots
343
00:18:02,915 --> 00:18:08,052
grow in number like clouds
gathering before a storm.
344
00:18:10,689 --> 00:18:12,623
When you start seeing
more and more sunspots,
345
00:18:12,724 --> 00:18:13,991
there's an expectation
that you're
346
00:18:14,093 --> 00:18:16,761
going to see more intense and
more frequent solar flares.
347
00:18:20,632 --> 00:18:22,633
NARRATOR: But what drives
this 11-year cycle?
348
00:18:24,002 --> 00:18:25,470
It's kind of ironic
that one of the most
349
00:18:25,571 --> 00:18:28,439
predictable things about the
Sun is also the most mysterious.
350
00:18:30,342 --> 00:18:33,411
PAUL M. SUTTER: We've been
puzzling over the sunspot cycle
351
00:18:33,512 --> 00:18:35,446
for generations.
352
00:18:35,547 --> 00:18:39,283
And now finally we have
spacecraft headed to the Sun
353
00:18:39,384 --> 00:18:40,751
to try to give us some answers.
354
00:18:42,754 --> 00:18:45,456
NARRATOR: The SOHO, SDO,
and STEREO spacecraft
355
00:18:45,557 --> 00:18:49,227
monitor the Sun's atmosphere
using ultraviolet telescopes.
356
00:18:51,363 --> 00:18:54,832
They spot flashes of
high-energy ultraviolet light
357
00:18:54,933 --> 00:18:56,167
moving across the Sun.
358
00:19:00,339 --> 00:19:02,273
These waves of light
could be connected
359
00:19:02,374 --> 00:19:09,580
to the cycle of sunspots
and to the Sun's outbursts.
360
00:19:09,681 --> 00:19:11,649
Because everything
we see on the Sun's
361
00:19:11,750 --> 00:19:17,255
surface is controlled by violent
processes deep in its interior.
362
00:19:21,260 --> 00:19:24,762
The Sun is a very simple onion.
363
00:19:24,863 --> 00:19:27,198
At the very, very
center is the core where
364
00:19:27,299 --> 00:19:29,133
the nuclear fusion happens.
365
00:19:29,234 --> 00:19:31,469
A layer surrounding
that is known
366
00:19:31,570 --> 00:19:34,872
as the radiative zone, where
most of the energy gets
367
00:19:34,973 --> 00:19:37,108
pushed out through radiation.
368
00:19:37,209 --> 00:19:39,510
Then surrounding
that is something
369
00:19:39,611 --> 00:19:42,013
called the convective
zone, where there's
370
00:19:42,114 --> 00:19:45,416
great plumes and
chains of plasma moving
371
00:19:45,517 --> 00:19:48,286
up and down, up and down.
372
00:19:48,387 --> 00:19:51,422
NARRATOR: But unlike an
onion, the layers spin.
373
00:19:54,226 --> 00:19:56,060
MICHELLE THALLER: There
are currents inside the Sun
374
00:19:56,161 --> 00:19:57,962
we don't see from the surface.
375
00:19:58,063 --> 00:19:59,897
Layers of the Sun
deep down inside
376
00:19:59,998 --> 00:20:02,033
are rotating at different
rates than the layers above.
377
00:20:03,435 --> 00:20:05,903
GIBOR BASRI: So it turns out
the inner part of the Sun
378
00:20:06,004 --> 00:20:08,539
is rotating at maybe
three times more
379
00:20:08,640 --> 00:20:11,042
rapidly than the
outer part of the Sun.
380
00:20:11,176 --> 00:20:13,044
We also can see on the
outer part of the Sun
381
00:20:13,145 --> 00:20:16,714
that the equator is rotating
more rapidly than the pole.
382
00:20:19,651 --> 00:20:22,320
NARRATOR: These layers of plasma
grinding against each other
383
00:20:22,421 --> 00:20:27,525
generate the Sun's enormously
powerful magnetic field
384
00:20:27,626 --> 00:20:31,729
and give rise to sunspots,
plasma loops, and solar flares.
385
00:20:33,832 --> 00:20:36,601
This differential
rotation takes the field
386
00:20:36,702 --> 00:20:39,203
and starts twisting
it around the Sun.
387
00:20:39,304 --> 00:20:41,739
So as the magnetic
field gets too twisted,
388
00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:42,940
it starts knotting up.
389
00:20:43,041 --> 00:20:45,376
And these knots start
bubbling up to the surface.
390
00:20:45,477 --> 00:20:47,511
And that's what we're seeing
actually with the sunspots.
391
00:20:49,147 --> 00:20:51,082
And that's why you see
all these wonderful loops
392
00:20:51,183 --> 00:20:53,050
and prominences
coming off the Sun.
393
00:20:53,151 --> 00:20:55,853
Once the magnetic fields start
twisting and interacting,
394
00:20:55,954 --> 00:20:59,023
they can direct the plasma
into vast rivers and loops
395
00:20:59,124 --> 00:21:01,058
both above and below
the surface of the Sun.
396
00:21:05,397 --> 00:21:08,866
NARRATOR: Why these events flare
up every 11 years is a mystery.
397
00:21:10,902 --> 00:21:14,071
But now new observations
from the solar fleet
398
00:21:14,172 --> 00:21:17,341
could provide a clue about
what triggers the solar cycle.
399
00:21:19,378 --> 00:21:23,414
Giant, moving magnetic fields
beneath the Sun's surface.
400
00:21:26,285 --> 00:21:29,487
We think that the ultraviolet
light flickers are telling
401
00:21:29,588 --> 00:21:31,822
us where the magnetic field is.
402
00:21:33,258 --> 00:21:34,759
In the course of
the 11-year cycle,
403
00:21:34,860 --> 00:21:36,727
the Sun's magnetic
fields begin to move
404
00:21:36,828 --> 00:21:40,931
down from the poles closer
and closer to the equator.
405
00:21:41,033 --> 00:21:43,934
NARRATOR: As the magnetic field
lines move through the star,
406
00:21:44,036 --> 00:21:46,170
they carry huge amounts
of plasma with them.
407
00:21:48,774 --> 00:21:53,344
The magnetic field lines act
like shepherds for the plasma
408
00:21:53,445 --> 00:21:55,079
underneath the surface.
409
00:21:55,180 --> 00:21:58,182
And they push plasma down
to the equator of the Sun.
410
00:21:59,951 --> 00:22:02,953
NARRATOR: The magnetic
fields trap enormous amounts
411
00:22:03,055 --> 00:22:07,224
of plasma, like
water behind a dam,
412
00:22:07,326 --> 00:22:09,694
until eventually
the floodgates open,
413
00:22:09,795 --> 00:22:11,896
and the plasma
comes rushing out.
414
00:22:15,334 --> 00:22:17,802
When the magnetic fields
meet, they cancel each other out
415
00:22:17,903 --> 00:22:21,505
and release the plasma,
which goes as a tsunami wave
416
00:22:21,606 --> 00:22:22,573
back to the polls.
417
00:22:24,609 --> 00:22:25,910
MICHELLE THALLER:
When that plasma
418
00:22:26,011 --> 00:22:28,279
rebounds from the equator and
hits the magnetic field coming
419
00:22:28,380 --> 00:22:30,147
down from the poles
at the mid latitudes,
420
00:22:30,248 --> 00:22:33,818
you get a huge burst
of magnetic activity.
421
00:22:33,919 --> 00:22:37,421
NARRATOR: Magnetic activity that
triggers sunspots and loops.
422
00:22:37,522 --> 00:22:39,523
Also explains the 11-year cycle.
423
00:22:43,428 --> 00:22:45,696
We think that this
relationship between
424
00:22:45,797 --> 00:22:48,366
the magnetic fields, the
ultraviolet flickers,
425
00:22:48,467 --> 00:22:52,002
and the plasma drives
the 11-year cycle.
426
00:22:52,104 --> 00:22:55,039
We think this is what's
actually doing the work.
427
00:22:56,908 --> 00:23:00,344
NARRATOR: The solar cycle
has wound down for now.
428
00:23:00,445 --> 00:23:04,749
But once the next plasma
tsunami rushes through the Sun,
429
00:23:04,850 --> 00:23:07,785
our star will kick
start into action again.
430
00:23:09,187 --> 00:23:10,721
Over the next few
years, we're going
431
00:23:10,822 --> 00:23:15,092
to start to see more sunspots,
more activity, more flares,
432
00:23:15,193 --> 00:23:17,895
more ejections, and
more space weather
433
00:23:17,996 --> 00:23:18,829
that we have to deal with.
434
00:23:20,866 --> 00:23:24,068
NARRATOR: Our fleet of solar
spies is poised and ready.
435
00:23:28,573 --> 00:23:30,908
But flares and
coronal mass ejections
436
00:23:31,009 --> 00:23:33,177
are not the only
solar attacks we have
437
00:23:33,278 --> 00:23:34,478
to shield ourselves against.
438
00:23:36,214 --> 00:23:38,516
There's a strange,
invisible force
439
00:23:38,617 --> 00:23:41,886
flowing through the
entire solar system.
440
00:23:41,987 --> 00:23:43,654
There is this great
wind of high-energy
441
00:23:43,755 --> 00:23:44,622
particles from the Sun.
442
00:23:44,723 --> 00:23:46,123
A million mile-an-hour wind.
443
00:23:47,993 --> 00:23:49,393
NARRATOR: And it can be deadly.
444
00:23:53,465 --> 00:23:54,365
[explosion]
445
00:24:04,443 --> 00:24:09,213
In November 2019, the solar
fleet watched as Mercury
446
00:24:09,314 --> 00:24:10,548
sailed across the Sun.
447
00:24:13,819 --> 00:24:15,386
JESSIE CHRISTIANSEN: Mercury
is the closest planet
448
00:24:15,487 --> 00:24:17,021
to our Sun in our solar system.
449
00:24:17,122 --> 00:24:18,722
So it's on the
front line receiving
450
00:24:18,824 --> 00:24:19,957
all of this radiation.
451
00:24:20,058 --> 00:24:21,725
An incredible amount of energy.
452
00:24:21,793 --> 00:24:23,027
And it's such a tiny planet.
453
00:24:24,463 --> 00:24:26,831
NARRATOR: Temperatures on the
innermost planet's surface
454
00:24:26,932 --> 00:24:29,467
reach 800 degrees Fahrenheit.
455
00:24:30,902 --> 00:24:33,204
But scientists discovered
something unexpected
456
00:24:33,305 --> 00:24:34,004
on Mercury.
457
00:24:35,941 --> 00:24:39,009
Frozen pools of water
hidden in its craters.
458
00:24:41,813 --> 00:24:43,681
It's one of the last places
in the solar system you might
459
00:24:43,782 --> 00:24:45,983
expect to find ice, on
Mercury, one of the hottest
460
00:24:46,084 --> 00:24:47,852
planets in the solar system.
461
00:24:47,953 --> 00:24:49,820
KEVIN WALSH: Despite
the overall really
462
00:24:49,921 --> 00:24:52,056
high temperatures
across the whole planet,
463
00:24:52,157 --> 00:24:53,824
there are regions...
464
00:24:53,925 --> 00:24:55,559
Typically deep within craters...
465
00:24:55,660 --> 00:24:57,194
That are permanently shadowed.
466
00:24:57,295 --> 00:25:00,698
So there's never direct sunlight
on those regions of Mercury.
467
00:25:00,799 --> 00:25:05,169
And you can keep things as
cold as ice in those craters.
468
00:25:05,270 --> 00:25:07,071
NARRATOR: But where
did the ice come from?
469
00:25:08,406 --> 00:25:10,374
When we first saw that
there was ice on Mercury,
470
00:25:10,475 --> 00:25:12,343
we thought something must
have brought it there.
471
00:25:12,444 --> 00:25:14,745
Something like a comet,
which is made out of ice.
472
00:25:16,381 --> 00:25:18,349
But there's a new
idea that maybe
473
00:25:18,450 --> 00:25:21,552
the materials that
make this ice are
474
00:25:21,653 --> 00:25:23,454
actually coming from the Sun.
475
00:25:26,691 --> 00:25:28,859
NARRATOR: The Sun creating
ice sounds strange.
476
00:25:30,328 --> 00:25:34,098
But recent research shows
it's not as crazy as it seems.
477
00:25:35,734 --> 00:25:37,735
MICHELLE THALLER: We often
think of space as being empty.
478
00:25:37,836 --> 00:25:41,138
But in fact, we are bathed
in a wind, a million
479
00:25:41,239 --> 00:25:43,541
mile-an-hour wind of high-energy
particles from the Sun
480
00:25:43,642 --> 00:25:44,408
all the time.
481
00:25:44,509 --> 00:25:45,209
The solar wind.
482
00:25:48,179 --> 00:25:50,014
NARRATOR: A stream of
subatomic particles
483
00:25:50,115 --> 00:25:52,850
called protons
constantly flow out
484
00:25:52,951 --> 00:25:58,022
from the Sun in all directions,
bombarding the planets
485
00:25:58,123 --> 00:25:58,989
of our solar system.
486
00:26:03,228 --> 00:26:06,096
CARLY HOWETT: The solar wind is
so strong when it hits Mercury
487
00:26:06,197 --> 00:26:07,765
that it can break down
some of the minerals
488
00:26:07,866 --> 00:26:10,968
and rocks on its surface
into their constituent parts.
489
00:26:11,069 --> 00:26:14,405
And those parts, especially
if they have oxygen in them,
490
00:26:14,506 --> 00:26:17,508
can go to reform and
form water, which
491
00:26:17,609 --> 00:26:20,144
if it forms in the right
place, can then stick around.
492
00:26:22,614 --> 00:26:25,649
NARRATOR: Protons in the solar
wind combined with oxygen
493
00:26:25,750 --> 00:26:28,052
to form water molecules.
494
00:26:28,153 --> 00:26:30,521
They condense and
freeze in craters
495
00:26:30,622 --> 00:26:31,555
which never see sunlight.
496
00:26:34,626 --> 00:26:38,362
So even on the Sun's closest
neighbor, ice builds up.
497
00:26:40,899 --> 00:26:43,367
But the solar wind
doesn't stop at Mercury.
498
00:26:47,038 --> 00:26:49,139
The solar wind has
a tremendous impact
499
00:26:49,240 --> 00:26:51,809
on the world's of
our solar system.
500
00:26:51,910 --> 00:26:53,777
We think it's responsible
for the planet Venus
501
00:26:53,878 --> 00:26:55,512
becoming this hell hole of heat.
502
00:26:57,449 --> 00:27:01,719
NARRATOR: Up until as recently
as 700 million years ago,
503
00:27:01,820 --> 00:27:04,822
Venus was a lush water
world with conditions
504
00:27:04,923 --> 00:27:05,856
suitable for life.
505
00:27:07,959 --> 00:27:11,695
But the solar wind blasted
away the water vapor and oxygen
506
00:27:11,796 --> 00:27:17,167
from Venus's atmosphere, leaving
carbon dioxide to dominate,
507
00:27:17,268 --> 00:27:19,637
trapping the Sun's heat,
and causing surface
508
00:27:19,738 --> 00:27:21,138
temperatures to skyrocket.
509
00:27:23,608 --> 00:27:25,609
Mars was once habitable too.
510
00:27:27,312 --> 00:27:30,781
But the solar wind quickly
took care of that as well.
511
00:27:33,318 --> 00:27:34,852
PAUL M. SUTTER: We believe
that billions of years
512
00:27:34,953 --> 00:27:39,123
ago, Mars had an atmosphere,
and it had oceans, and rivers.
513
00:27:39,224 --> 00:27:40,190
It looked a lot like Earth.
514
00:27:40,291 --> 00:27:41,625
It was gorgeous.
515
00:27:41,726 --> 00:27:46,397
But that solar wind stripped
away the Martian atmosphere
516
00:27:46,498 --> 00:27:49,199
and turned it into the barren
wasteland that it is today.
517
00:27:51,302 --> 00:27:54,371
NARRATOR: And Earth is
in the line of fire too.
518
00:27:54,472 --> 00:27:58,208
It's bombarded every day
with solar wind particles.
519
00:28:00,178 --> 00:28:02,112
So how has life survived?
520
00:28:03,348 --> 00:28:04,481
MICHELLE THALLER: One
of the things we really
521
00:28:04,582 --> 00:28:06,250
take for granted is
how well protected
522
00:28:06,351 --> 00:28:07,651
we are here on the Earth.
523
00:28:07,752 --> 00:28:10,421
The atmosphere absorbs a lot
of harmful things from space
524
00:28:10,522 --> 00:28:11,655
and from the Sun as well.
525
00:28:11,756 --> 00:28:13,657
But also our magnetic
field deflects
526
00:28:13,758 --> 00:28:14,958
the solar wind around us.
527
00:28:15,060 --> 00:28:16,593
And we still have an atmosphere.
528
00:28:18,396 --> 00:28:21,098
And when the charged
particles come from the Sun,
529
00:28:21,199 --> 00:28:22,599
the magnetic field
lines trap those
530
00:28:22,701 --> 00:28:24,501
charged particles
and redirect them
531
00:28:24,602 --> 00:28:26,203
to the poles of the planet.
532
00:28:26,304 --> 00:28:28,472
PHIL PLAIT: The physical effect,
the direct physical effect,
533
00:28:28,573 --> 00:28:30,441
of getting bombarded
by these particles,
534
00:28:30,542 --> 00:28:33,610
they can generate the Aurora
borealis, the Northern Lights.
535
00:28:33,712 --> 00:28:36,447
And these are spectacular
and beautiful.
536
00:28:37,882 --> 00:28:40,584
NARRATOR: Auroras are beautiful.
537
00:28:40,685 --> 00:28:44,354
But they're also the front line
in the battle between Earth
538
00:28:44,456 --> 00:28:46,657
and the solar wind.
539
00:28:46,758 --> 00:28:49,093
Without our protective
shield, we'd suffer
540
00:28:49,194 --> 00:28:51,462
the same fate as Venus or Mars.
541
00:28:53,264 --> 00:28:56,867
But there is a mystery
surrounding the solar wind.
542
00:28:56,968 --> 00:28:58,702
One of the things we
know about the solar wind
543
00:28:58,803 --> 00:29:00,738
is that it is hugely energetic.
544
00:29:00,839 --> 00:29:02,339
A million miles-an-hour.
545
00:29:02,440 --> 00:29:03,540
What gives it that energy?
546
00:29:05,210 --> 00:29:08,512
NARRATOR: Astronomers think
the source of the solar wind
547
00:29:08,646 --> 00:29:13,617
lies in the inner corona, the
atmosphere of the Sun revealed
548
00:29:13,718 --> 00:29:15,586
by our solar sentinel, SOHO.
549
00:29:17,555 --> 00:29:20,491
SOHO's data shows that
near the Sun's surface,
550
00:29:20,592 --> 00:29:22,593
the wind speed is close to zero.
551
00:29:25,130 --> 00:29:28,031
But by the time the win
gets to the outer corona,
552
00:29:28,133 --> 00:29:33,904
it accelerates to
720,000 miles-an-hour.
553
00:29:34,005 --> 00:29:36,774
Something happens mysterious
between the surface of the Sun
554
00:29:36,875 --> 00:29:39,409
and the corona that gives
a punch to the solar wind.
555
00:29:41,246 --> 00:29:44,548
NARRATOR: To investigate,
we need to visit the corona.
556
00:29:46,050 --> 00:29:50,420
So NASA sent a scout on a daring
mission behind enemy lines.
557
00:29:53,424 --> 00:29:55,993
The Parker Solar Probe,
that's a daredevil.
558
00:29:56,094 --> 00:29:58,962
This is designed to
dive bomb the Sun.
559
00:30:03,701 --> 00:30:03,801
[explosion]
560
00:30:12,110 --> 00:30:14,344
NARRATOR: The Sun exerts
a hostile influence
561
00:30:14,445 --> 00:30:16,280
on the planets of
our solar system.
562
00:30:18,983 --> 00:30:19,683
The solar wind.
563
00:30:21,152 --> 00:30:22,186
It's fast.
564
00:30:22,287 --> 00:30:23,921
It's lethal.
565
00:30:24,022 --> 00:30:27,157
But we don't know how it works.
566
00:30:27,258 --> 00:30:29,059
MICHELLE THALLER: We have
spacecraft between us
567
00:30:29,160 --> 00:30:31,161
and the Sun that can actually
see what's coming towards us
568
00:30:31,262 --> 00:30:32,596
and how it will impact us.
569
00:30:32,697 --> 00:30:35,032
But what scientists have
never been able to explain
570
00:30:35,133 --> 00:30:39,069
is what actually accelerates
the wind away from the Sun.
571
00:30:39,170 --> 00:30:41,338
This has been one of the biggest
mysteries of the Sun so far.
572
00:30:43,741 --> 00:30:45,943
NARRATOR: For decades, we
had no way of solving it.
573
00:30:47,812 --> 00:30:48,512
Until now.
574
00:30:50,582 --> 00:30:52,182
There really are some
of these wonderful moments
575
00:30:52,283 --> 00:30:53,517
when you're a scientist.
576
00:30:53,618 --> 00:30:56,720
And I was actually at the launch
of the Parker Solar Probe,
577
00:30:56,821 --> 00:30:58,856
standing right next
to Dr. Eugene Parker,
578
00:30:58,957 --> 00:31:00,424
who the probe is named after.
579
00:31:00,525 --> 00:31:03,427
NEWSCASTER VOICE: Liftoff
of the Parker Solar Probe.
580
00:31:03,528 --> 00:31:04,962
MICHELLE THALLER: Long
ago, he had proposed
581
00:31:05,063 --> 00:31:06,830
the Sun probably had
a wind of particles
582
00:31:06,931 --> 00:31:08,131
that affected the Earth.
583
00:31:08,233 --> 00:31:10,100
And people basically
laughed at him.
584
00:31:10,201 --> 00:31:11,869
But he was proven
right over time.
585
00:31:11,970 --> 00:31:15,472
And as that giant delta rocket
slowly went up from the pad,
586
00:31:15,573 --> 00:31:18,475
he and I both got to be bathed
in that light, and smile.
587
00:31:21,646 --> 00:31:24,348
There has been
no spacecraft ever
588
00:31:24,449 --> 00:31:27,484
in human history to
fly through the corona,
589
00:31:27,585 --> 00:31:30,520
the very atmosphere of the Sun.
590
00:31:30,622 --> 00:31:32,222
GIBOR BASRI: Didn't work
out well for Icarus.
591
00:31:32,323 --> 00:31:34,758
And we hope it works
out well for Parker.
592
00:31:34,859 --> 00:31:36,360
The thing about
going near the Sun
593
00:31:36,461 --> 00:31:40,564
is, the closer you go to it,
the closer your temperature gets
594
00:31:40,665 --> 00:31:42,366
to its surface temperature.
595
00:31:42,467 --> 00:31:44,801
And its surface temperature
is 6,000 degrees,
596
00:31:44,903 --> 00:31:46,637
which vaporizes metal easily.
597
00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:52,075
NARRATOR: Surviving close
to the Sun is a big ask.
598
00:31:53,645 --> 00:31:54,978
But reaching the Sun?
599
00:31:55,079 --> 00:31:57,915
That's an even bigger challenge.
600
00:31:58,016 --> 00:31:59,116
It's very hot.
601
00:31:59,217 --> 00:32:01,485
It tends to melt
your spacecraft.
602
00:32:01,586 --> 00:32:02,953
That's the obvious problem.
603
00:32:03,054 --> 00:32:06,189
A less obvious problem is
it's just hard to get there.
604
00:32:06,291 --> 00:32:08,592
This is something I think that
it's very hard for most people
605
00:32:08,693 --> 00:32:10,560
to grasp.
606
00:32:10,662 --> 00:32:11,895
There have been
suggestions of, you
607
00:32:11,996 --> 00:32:14,197
know, let's send all our
nuclear waste into the Sun,
608
00:32:14,299 --> 00:32:15,999
or our trash, or whatever.
609
00:32:16,100 --> 00:32:18,535
And it turns out to be
very difficult to drop
610
00:32:18,636 --> 00:32:19,636
anything into the Sun.
611
00:32:21,506 --> 00:32:23,006
NARRATOR: The
reason is the Earth
612
00:32:23,074 --> 00:32:28,378
is circling around the Sun
at 67,000 miles-an-hour.
613
00:32:28,479 --> 00:32:31,815
That's good because that means
we don't drop in to the Sun.
614
00:32:31,916 --> 00:32:33,517
We stay at the same distance.
615
00:32:33,618 --> 00:32:35,285
But if you do want
to drop into the Sun,
616
00:32:35,386 --> 00:32:36,820
you'd have to lose
that velocity.
617
00:32:36,921 --> 00:32:38,155
And that's a lot of velocity.
618
00:32:40,591 --> 00:32:43,093
NARRATOR: To lose speed
the Parker Solar Probe
619
00:32:43,194 --> 00:32:48,432
swings by Venus, performing
a gravitational slingshot
620
00:32:48,533 --> 00:32:49,199
in reverse.
621
00:32:50,935 --> 00:32:52,970
MICHELLE THALLER: Now usually,
a gravitational slingshot
622
00:32:53,071 --> 00:32:54,771
gives us more velocity.
623
00:32:54,872 --> 00:32:57,040
So if we're flying out
to Pluto, for example,
624
00:32:57,141 --> 00:32:59,576
we might whip the spacecraft
around the planet Jupiter.
625
00:32:59,677 --> 00:33:02,879
It actually takes the spacecraft
and gravitationally slingshots
626
00:33:02,981 --> 00:33:05,282
it forward, making go faster.
627
00:33:05,383 --> 00:33:07,017
The thing that we have to
do with Parker Solar Probe
628
00:33:07,118 --> 00:33:08,251
is the opposite.
629
00:33:08,319 --> 00:33:10,020
We're going to use a
gravitational slingshot,
630
00:33:10,121 --> 00:33:11,355
but not to speed it up...
631
00:33:11,456 --> 00:33:12,155
To slow it down.
632
00:33:13,725 --> 00:33:15,726
NARRATOR: Parker's
gravitational maneuvers
633
00:33:15,827 --> 00:33:18,962
send the craft on a
trajectory inside the Sun's
634
00:33:19,063 --> 00:33:24,001
extended corona,
closer to the Sun
635
00:33:24,102 --> 00:33:27,137
than any spacecraft before it.
636
00:33:27,238 --> 00:33:31,074
This probe actually dives
really deep toward the Sun.
637
00:33:31,175 --> 00:33:34,945
So it's actually going through
some of these coronal material
638
00:33:35,046 --> 00:33:37,047
and can actually observe
it directly in a way
639
00:33:37,148 --> 00:33:38,115
that other probes can't.
640
00:33:41,152 --> 00:33:44,221
NARRATOR: Using its extreme
ultraviolet telescope,
641
00:33:44,322 --> 00:33:46,857
Parker spots vast,
dark regions below.
642
00:33:50,028 --> 00:33:51,228
There's really
interesting regions
643
00:33:51,329 --> 00:33:53,397
called coronal holes
where you can see
644
00:33:53,498 --> 00:33:55,265
literally deeper into the Sun.
645
00:33:56,901 --> 00:34:00,037
NARRATOR: Coronal holes are
areas of the Sun's coronavirus
646
00:34:00,138 --> 00:34:02,773
where the atmosphere is
cooler and less dense.
647
00:34:05,576 --> 00:34:09,980
And when the probe passes over
a hole in the coronavirus it
648
00:34:10,081 --> 00:34:11,648
gets a bigger blast
of the solar wind.
649
00:34:13,184 --> 00:34:14,651
NARRATOR: These coronal
holes appear to be
650
00:34:14,752 --> 00:34:16,153
the source of the solar wind.
651
00:34:18,322 --> 00:34:19,756
And we think it's
through these holes
652
00:34:19,857 --> 00:34:21,792
that the solar wind is
able to escape the Sun.
653
00:34:23,194 --> 00:34:24,728
NARRATOR: The big
question is, how
654
00:34:24,829 --> 00:34:28,198
does the solar wind actually
accelerate away from the Sun?
655
00:34:29,667 --> 00:34:31,001
It seems to defy logic.
656
00:34:33,271 --> 00:34:35,739
You would think that as
something leaves the source,
657
00:34:35,840 --> 00:34:37,874
it would probably start
to slow down, or at least
658
00:34:37,975 --> 00:34:39,076
stay the same speed.
659
00:34:39,177 --> 00:34:40,077
But this doesn't.
660
00:34:40,178 --> 00:34:40,877
It gets faster.
661
00:34:42,513 --> 00:34:44,681
MICHELLE THALLER: Something is
accelerating the solar wind.
662
00:34:44,782 --> 00:34:46,850
It gets faster and
hotter as it moves away
663
00:34:46,951 --> 00:34:48,151
from the surface of the Sun.
664
00:34:48,252 --> 00:34:49,686
And the mechanism is a mystery.
665
00:34:51,489 --> 00:34:53,623
NARRATOR: To solve the
mystery, our solar scout
666
00:34:53,724 --> 00:34:55,158
dives close to the Sun...
667
00:34:57,095 --> 00:35:00,530
Not to see what's going
on, but to listen.
668
00:35:00,631 --> 00:35:01,965
[strange noises]
669
00:35:15,780 --> 00:35:18,281
That sounded spooky.
670
00:35:18,382 --> 00:35:20,083
That sounded really spooky.
671
00:35:20,184 --> 00:35:22,052
You know, for something
that's so big and powerful,
672
00:35:22,153 --> 00:35:23,320
it's very gentle sounding.
673
00:35:24,922 --> 00:35:27,991
It really, you know,
disguises the fact
674
00:35:28,092 --> 00:35:29,392
that it's incredibly
destructive and would
675
00:35:29,494 --> 00:35:30,293
kill me in an instant.
676
00:35:32,597 --> 00:35:34,564
NARRATOR: These
strange sounds could
677
00:35:34,665 --> 00:35:37,767
actually reveal what
gives the solar wind
678
00:35:37,869 --> 00:35:39,636
its destructive power.
679
00:35:39,770 --> 00:35:42,739
Fluctuations in the
Sun's magnetic field
680
00:35:42,840 --> 00:35:45,342
generate waves that roll
through the particles
681
00:35:45,443 --> 00:35:46,276
of the solar wind.
682
00:35:48,613 --> 00:35:51,248
These acoustic waves
transport particles with them
683
00:35:51,349 --> 00:35:52,482
that give them energy.
684
00:35:52,583 --> 00:35:53,984
Think about a surfer
actually going
685
00:35:54,085 --> 00:35:55,552
down the surface
of a wave, going
686
00:35:55,653 --> 00:35:57,120
faster and faster all the time.
687
00:35:58,956 --> 00:36:01,958
NARRATOR: These waves could be
what accelerates the particles
688
00:36:02,059 --> 00:36:07,964
in the solar wind from 0
to 720,000 miles-an-hour,
689
00:36:08,065 --> 00:36:10,300
giving them the momentum
they need to reach
690
00:36:10,401 --> 00:36:11,902
far into the solar system.
691
00:36:13,905 --> 00:36:17,007
The solar winds travel
just incredible distances.
692
00:36:17,108 --> 00:36:19,676
You know, they go past
the Earth, past Jupiter.
693
00:36:19,777 --> 00:36:22,212
They've even been
seen past Pluto.
694
00:36:24,348 --> 00:36:26,449
MICHELLE THALLER: It really does
pack a wallop, even all the way
695
00:36:26,551 --> 00:36:27,751
at the edge of our solar system.
696
00:36:29,253 --> 00:36:31,588
One of the things that really
surprised me is that Pluto...
697
00:36:31,689 --> 00:36:33,990
There are bits of its
atmosphere being blasted off
698
00:36:34,091 --> 00:36:35,825
by the solar wind all the time.
699
00:36:35,927 --> 00:36:38,662
Tons of atmosphere a day
are being lost from Pluto.
700
00:36:40,097 --> 00:36:41,765
NARRATOR: The solar
wind is powerful enough
701
00:36:41,866 --> 00:36:47,571
to blast past the planets to the
very edges of our solar system.
702
00:36:50,174 --> 00:36:53,944
When we sent members of the
solar fleet to investigate,
703
00:36:54,045 --> 00:36:58,048
we witnessed a battle between
the Sun and interstellar space.
704
00:37:00,051 --> 00:37:03,453
A battle that could decide
the fate of our planet.
705
00:37:06,524 --> 00:37:06,556
[explosion]
706
00:37:15,366 --> 00:37:18,735
The Sun blasts the solar system
with a storm of particles.
707
00:37:20,271 --> 00:37:21,004
The solar wind.
708
00:37:22,640 --> 00:37:24,207
But how far does
that wind reach?
709
00:37:26,644 --> 00:37:29,512
For 40 years, the oldest
members of the solar fleet
710
00:37:29,614 --> 00:37:31,648
have been on a
long-range reconnaissance
711
00:37:31,749 --> 00:37:33,316
mission to find out.
712
00:37:35,586 --> 00:37:38,355
The Voyager program,
it was a wonderful idea.
713
00:37:38,456 --> 00:37:41,491
A grand tour of the outer
solar system in the latter part
714
00:37:41,592 --> 00:37:43,193
of the 1970s.
715
00:37:43,294 --> 00:37:45,929
In fact, both Voyagers
have traveled so far now
716
00:37:46,030 --> 00:37:48,131
that they've effectively
reached the outer edges
717
00:37:48,232 --> 00:37:50,233
of our solar system,
that boundary
718
00:37:50,334 --> 00:37:53,036
zone where the Sun's influence
wanes and the stars take over.
719
00:37:55,072 --> 00:37:57,741
NARRATOR: Over 11
billion miles away,
720
00:37:57,842 --> 00:38:01,278
the Voyager probes cross
over into interstellar space.
721
00:38:03,114 --> 00:38:05,248
But have they reached the
edge of the solar wind?
722
00:38:06,617 --> 00:38:10,153
Voyager 2, it was able
to sample the environment
723
00:38:10,254 --> 00:38:13,156
around it and found the usual
mix of solar wind particles
724
00:38:13,257 --> 00:38:16,626
give way to a different
flavor of particles
725
00:38:16,727 --> 00:38:20,697
with different energies,
the general interstellar
726
00:38:20,798 --> 00:38:24,000
mix of particles that are just
hanging out in our galaxy.
727
00:38:25,403 --> 00:38:27,003
The solar wind actually smashes
728
00:38:27,104 --> 00:38:31,274
into and shocks up against the
gas of the interstellar medium.
729
00:38:31,375 --> 00:38:33,410
We discovered the edge
of our solar system.
730
00:38:33,511 --> 00:38:35,645
And it was much more
dramatic, much more active
731
00:38:35,746 --> 00:38:36,880
than we anticipated.
732
00:38:39,383 --> 00:38:41,918
NARRATOR: Interstellar
space is violent
733
00:38:42,019 --> 00:38:44,888
and dangerous, teeming
with lethal radiation.
734
00:38:47,591 --> 00:38:51,594
Supernova blasts and
colliding neutron stars
735
00:38:51,696 --> 00:38:54,831
send cosmic rays across
the galaxy straight
736
00:38:54,932 --> 00:38:56,032
toward our solar system.
737
00:38:58,769 --> 00:39:01,271
But these deadly threats
are stopped in their tracks.
738
00:39:03,941 --> 00:39:05,375
MICHELLE THALLER: We
really do live inside kind
739
00:39:05,476 --> 00:39:08,745
of a protective bubble that's
being blown by the solar wind.
740
00:39:08,846 --> 00:39:11,281
You see, as the solar wind
moves out into our solar system,
741
00:39:11,382 --> 00:39:14,017
it carries with it the
Sun's magnetic field.
742
00:39:14,118 --> 00:39:16,319
That magnetic field
protects us from the highest
743
00:39:16,420 --> 00:39:19,622
energy particles the universe
can come up with... cosmic rays.
744
00:39:19,724 --> 00:39:22,525
In some cases, a single
proton can have as much energy
745
00:39:22,626 --> 00:39:24,060
as a 100 mile-an-hour fastball.
746
00:39:25,696 --> 00:39:27,664
NARRATOR: Without this
protective bubble, called
747
00:39:27,765 --> 00:39:32,402
the heliosphere, cosmic protons
would smash through your cells,
748
00:39:32,503 --> 00:39:33,470
damaging your DNA.
749
00:39:35,172 --> 00:39:38,508
Ironically, the
solar wind is deadly.
750
00:39:38,609 --> 00:39:40,643
But without it, we
wouldn't be here.
751
00:39:42,880 --> 00:39:44,447
PHIL PLAIT: Like
we saw with Mars,
752
00:39:44,548 --> 00:39:48,585
the solar wind has the ability
to wipe out life on Earth.
753
00:39:48,686 --> 00:39:52,122
But out there in the furthest
reaches of our solar system,
754
00:39:52,223 --> 00:39:54,524
it's defending life on Earth.
755
00:39:54,625 --> 00:39:56,593
So in a way, it's
a giver of life.
756
00:39:56,694 --> 00:39:57,560
And it takes life.
757
00:39:57,661 --> 00:39:58,561
A yin and a yang.
758
00:40:01,766 --> 00:40:04,401
NARRATOR: And now
for the first time,
759
00:40:04,502 --> 00:40:07,971
the Voyager probes have
looked back at the heliosphere
760
00:40:08,072 --> 00:40:12,976
from the outside, revealing
what our solar system looks
761
00:40:13,077 --> 00:40:14,944
like as it moves through space.
762
00:40:17,748 --> 00:40:20,316
Something that we lose sight
of sitting here on Earth,
763
00:40:20,418 --> 00:40:23,286
watching the Sun go around,
watching the planets go around,
764
00:40:23,354 --> 00:40:27,424
is that the Sun itself is
actually hurtling through space
765
00:40:27,525 --> 00:40:29,826
really, really fast on an
orbit around the center
766
00:40:29,927 --> 00:40:30,627
of our galaxy.
767
00:40:32,363 --> 00:40:34,631
If our Sun were
perfectly stationary,
768
00:40:34,732 --> 00:40:38,101
then the heliosphere
would be a perfect sphere.
769
00:40:38,202 --> 00:40:41,204
But because it's
moving, it's plowing
770
00:40:41,305 --> 00:40:43,640
through that
interstellar medium.
771
00:40:43,774 --> 00:40:45,875
And so that makes
one end shorter
772
00:40:45,976 --> 00:40:47,777
and the other end longer.
773
00:40:47,912 --> 00:40:51,548
And new research is showing it's
even more complicated than that
774
00:40:51,649 --> 00:40:54,150
where we might have
like a double tail,
775
00:40:54,251 --> 00:40:57,787
almost like a buttery
croissant surrounding the Sun.
776
00:41:00,458 --> 00:41:03,593
NARRATOR: Our Sun
shapes our world
777
00:41:03,694 --> 00:41:06,896
and protects us from the
dangers of interstellar space.
778
00:41:09,667 --> 00:41:12,302
It's the engine that drives
the entire solar system.
779
00:41:15,039 --> 00:41:19,275
And now, for the first time,
our fleet of solar spacecraft
780
00:41:19,376 --> 00:41:21,344
shows us how it works.
781
00:41:22,847 --> 00:41:24,547
We're pretty familiar
with the Sun, right?
782
00:41:24,648 --> 00:41:26,082
You see it all the
time during the day.
783
00:41:26,183 --> 00:41:26,950
Lights up the Earth.
784
00:41:27,051 --> 00:41:28,251
Provides us with heat.
785
00:41:28,352 --> 00:41:30,954
But observing it with all
these other satellites, all
786
00:41:31,055 --> 00:41:33,790
these observatories, has
shown us a side of the Sun
787
00:41:33,891 --> 00:41:35,191
that we knew nothing about.
788
00:41:37,261 --> 00:41:39,462
JESSIE CHRISTIANSEN: We have
this whole fleet of spacecraft
789
00:41:39,563 --> 00:41:41,931
orbiting the Sun taking
observations in all
790
00:41:42,032 --> 00:41:43,166
of these different wavelengths.
791
00:41:43,267 --> 00:41:45,902
X-ray, ultraviolet,
optical, infrared.
792
00:41:46,003 --> 00:41:48,705
They tell us about the
functioning of the Sun
793
00:41:48,806 --> 00:41:51,474
from its outer atmosphere
down to its deep core
794
00:41:51,575 --> 00:41:54,978
and give us a window into its
functions and its evolution.
795
00:41:56,914 --> 00:41:59,883
Put them all together, and we
finally have an understanding
796
00:41:59,984 --> 00:42:02,552
of our source of life itself.
64158
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