Solar Orbiter Reveals the Origin of the Sun's Magnetic 'Whipcracks'

The Solar Orbiter space mission has shed light on the origin of 'switchbacks,' the rapid reversals of the solar magnetic field described as 'whip-like lashes.' The study, published in Nature Astronomy, traced the formation of these disturbances back to the surface of the Sun by analyzing the particles involved. The probe, developed by the European Space Agency with NASA participation, observed a switchback linked to an active region of our star on March 25, 2022.

The research unveils new details about solar magnetism, demonstrating how these phenomena propagate vast distances into interplanetary space. Switchbacks, which had often been observed near the Sun but whose formation remained a mystery, are now directly linked to magnetic activity on the stellar surface.

The Sun possesses an intense and dynamic magnetic field that is dragged outward by the solar wind, a continuous stream of particles (plasma) that flows into space. In the solar corona, the outermost part of our star's atmosphere, the magnetic field lines can twist, break, or fold back on themselves, generating disturbances known as switchbacks.

These structures, similar to hairpin turns or whip cracks, represent rapid reversals of the magnetic field that propagate into interplanetary space. The Solar Orbiter mission, launched in 2020 specifically to study the Sun and its magnetic field up close, has finally made it possible to directly link these phenomena to their origin on the solar surface, solving a long-standing mystery in solar physics.