Unusual auroral appearances at very low latitudes have been recorded in recent weeks as a result of intense solar activity recently produced by our star. These incredible light shows, normally visible from the far north of the planet, have been seen in southern Canada and the northwestern US, as well as across the UK – which is quite rare.
Unfortunately, these are not the only consequences that the radiation-laden plasma blasts ejected by solar flares cause on Earth when they come into contact with the planet’s atmosphere.
In addition to producing auroral displays, these events can also sometimes cause minor problems for satellite and power grid operators, as well as compromising radio signals.
To talk about all this, this Friday’s Olhar Espacial Program (3) welcomes scientist Adriana Valio, who will also discuss how stars similar to the Sun can create the ideal conditions for life on exoplanets.
Graduated in Physics from the University of Campinas (Unicamp), Adriana has a Master’s degree in Astronomy from the University of São Paulo, a PhD in Astronomy from the University of California-Berkeley, in the USA and postdoctoral degrees from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and Unicamp .
He is currently a professor at the University of São Paulo (USP) and conducts research with an emphasis on solar and stellar activity and the impact on the habitability of orbiting planets.
Adriana was president of the Brazilian Astronomical Society (SAB) in the biennium 2012-2014, where she later became treasurer (2015-2017).
Research professor at the Mackenzie Center for Radio Astronomy and Astrophysics (CRAAM), she was coordinator of the graduate course in Geospatial Sciences and Applications (2013-2022) at Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie. She also served as coordinator of the Astronomy area at FAPESP (2016-2022) and was a member of the CNPq Advisory Committee in the area of Physics and Astronomy (2018-2021).
Presented by Marcelo Zurita, president of the Associação Paraibana de Astronomia — APA; member of SAB — Brazilian Astronomical Society; technical director of BRAMON — Brazilian Meteor Observation Network — and regional coordinator (Northeast) of Asteroid Day Brazil, the program is broadcast live, every Friday, at 9 pm (Brasília time), through the vehicle’s official channels on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter LinkedIn and TikTok, in addition to the subscription channel Markket (611-Vivo, 56 -Sky and 692-ClaroTV).