Space Weather
Space weather describes changing environmental conditions in near-Earth space. Magnetic fields, radiation, particles and matter, which have been ejected from the Sun, can interact with the Earth’s upper atmosphere and surrounding magnetic field to produce a variety of effects.
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Aurora forecasts
Northern Hemisphere
Only minor enhancements to the auroral oval are expected over the coming days. Any visible aurora is likely to remain confined to high geomagnetic latitudes, where observations will also be limited by the short hours of darkness at this time of year.
Southern Hemisphere
Only minor enhancements to the auroral oval are expected over the coming days. Any visible aurora is likely to remain confined to high geomagnetic latitudes.
Issued at: 17:56 (GMT) on Wed 29 Jul 2026
Forecast overview
Space Weather Forecast Headline: Chance of isolated Moderate-class flares.
Analysis of Space Weather Activity over past 24 hours
Solar Activity: Low with only Common-class flares observed, with the most activity from a region in the northeast. This is largest and most complex of the nine regions on the Earth-facing disc, comprising of a main positive leader spot with the surrounding are potentially including spots of negative polarity. However this is currently difficult to assess due it location. The other regions are either small and indistinct, or simple and mature unipolar spots.
No Earth-directed Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) were observed.
Solar Wind / Geomagnetic Activity: Solar wind observations showed weak slow wind conditions with Background speeds, below 400km/s. Interplanetary Magnetic Field was Moderate to Weak, and erratically easing, with north-south component, weak but predominately southward. Geomagnetic activity was Quiet (Kp 1-2).
Energetic Particles / Solar Radiation: The count rate of energetic particles (high energy protons) persisted at background with no Solar Radiation storms observed.
Four-Day Space Weather Forecast Summary
Solar Activity: Low activity is likely, but with a chance of rising to Moderate due to isolated Moderate-class flares.
Solar Wind / Geomagnetic Activity: Two weak, slow, and faint CMEs may deliver glancing impacts late on day 1 or early on day 2 (29–30 July), and again late day 3 (31 July). However, both CMEs are considered more likely to mostly miss Earth. Otherwise Background slow winds conditions are expected to mostly prevail, with only a slight enhancement possible from any fast wind of the southern coronal hole, which is expected to pass mostly south of Earth. Quiet activity is mostly expected, with isolated Unsettled spells, but also a chance of Active intervals from any CME glance or fast wind enhancement.
Energetic Particles / Solar Radiation: The count rate of energetic particles (high energy protons) is most likely to remain at background with no Solar Radiation storms occurring.
Issued at: 12:10 (GMT) on Wed 29 Jul 2026
Solar imagery
SDO AIA-193
This channel highlights the outer atmosphere of the Sun - called the corona - as well as hot flare plasma. Hot active regions, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections will appear bright here. The dark areas - called coronal holes - are places where very little radiation is emitted, yet are the main source of solar wind particles.
Issued at:
SDO AIA-304
This channel is especially good at showing areas where cooler dense plumes of plasma (filaments and prominences) are located above the visible surface of the Sun. Many of these features either can't be seen or appear as dark lines in the other channels. The bright areas show places where the plasma has a high density.
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