coronal mass ejection

noun

, Astronomy.

1. a large-scale solar event involving an ejection of hot plasma that may accelerate charged particles and travel as far as the earth's orbit, preceded by a shock front that may create a magnetic storm on earth. : CME

coronal mass ejection

noun

1. a cloud of particles ejected from the sun's surface during a solar flare

coronal mass ejection

/ kôr′ə-nəl,kŏr′-,kə-rō′nəl /

1. A massive, bubble-shaped burst of plasma expanding outward from the Sun's corona, in which large amounts of superheated particles are emitted at nearly the speed of light. The emissions can cause disturbances in the solar wind that disrupt satellites and create powerful magnetic storms on Earth. They were first observed in the early 1970s, when photographs taken from satellites revealed coronal activity that could not be seen in images taken from Earth.

Example Sentences

Still, she says, coronal mass ejections highlight how important it is to consider what goes on beyond a potentially Earth-like planet’s atmosphere when searching for alien life.

From Popular-Science

Still, coronal mass ejections are observationally elusive, and not everyone is convinced that the team truly spotted one.

From Popular-Science