August 28, 2026

Scientists using India's first dedicated solar observatory, Aditya-L1, have found small, short-lived brightening in the Sun's atmosphere that appear in the hours before a major solar flare erupts and that cluster around the very spot where the flare later occurs. The result, published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS), draws on simultaneous ultraviolet (UV) and X-ray observations from three payloads of the Aditya-L1 mission.

Why solar flares matter

Solar flares are sudden and intense bursts of electromagnetic radiation from the Sun. It is understood to result from the release of magnetic energy. Large flares can disrupt radio communication, interfere with navigation systems, damage satellites, and increase radiation hazards for astronauts and spacecraft. Understanding how solar flares are triggered is therefore essential for improving space weather forecasting and protecting modern technological infrastructure.

How Aditya-L1 sees it

By observing the Sun continuously from the Sun–Earth Lagrange Point 1 (L1), Aditya-L1 provides an uninterrupted view of solar activity across multiple wavelengths. The Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) observes the Sun in eleven near-ultraviolet (NUV) filters, revealing different layers from the upper photosphere to the chromosphere. NUV wavelengths largely inaccessible from the ground because Earth's atmosphere absorbs most ultraviolet radiation. Complementing SUIT are two X-ray instruments, the Solar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer (SoLEXS) and the High Energy L1 Orbiting X-ray Spectrometer (HEL1OS), which measure the X-ray emission produced by energetic processes in the solar corona. Combining these data scientists study how activity in the lower solar atmosphere is linked to energy release in the corona during the build-up to a flare.

What the researchers discovered

Analysing several solar flare events in the Mg II h filter of SUIT, the team found numerous small, short-lived brightening known as transient events - occurring in active regions before the onset of major flares. Some of these also showed corresponding X-ray signatures, indicating that they involve the release of magnetic energy.

These pre-flare transient events clustered around the location where the major flare later occurred. The results suggest that repeated small-scale energy release may progressively destabilise the magnetic field in an active region, eventually leading to a large solar flare.

This study represents one of the first systematic investigations of pre-flare activity using simultaneous ultraviolet imaging and X-ray observations from a single observatory. The findings provide valuable insights into the physical processes that trigger solar flares and move scientists a step closer towards reliable flare forecasting — which will ultimately contribute to better space weather prediction, helping protect satellites, astronauts, communication systems and other critical technologies.

The study, led by researchers from the Manipal Centre for Natural Sciences (MCNS), Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), along with scientists from ISRO/DOS and other academia demonstrates the growing scientific impact of India's flagship solar mission, Aditya-L1.

Reference

Adithya H.N., Sreejith Padinhatteeri, et al. (2026). Multi-Wavelength Diagnostics of Pre-Flare Evolution with Aditya-L1: From the Solar Chromosphere to the Corona. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, stag1416, https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stag1416.