<p>On April 12, a gigantic plasma wave smashed into Mercury was launched by the Sun, the wave might have triggered a geomagnetic storm, Live Science reported. The process might also have scouring material from the planet's surface, the report added.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As per spaceweather.com, the wave that struck Mercury on April 12 happened after a powerful eruption was seen emanating from the Sun's far side a day before.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The report said that the storm may have created a temporary atmosphere and even added material to Mercury's comet-like tail.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It took the eruption, known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), took less than a day to strike Mercury which is the closest planet to Sun, the report added.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As per the report, the plasma wave came from a sunspot. Experts have noted that the sunspots are areas that appear dark on the surface of the Sun and the reason behind it is they are cooler than other parts of the Sun's surface.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Live Science report added that a sunspot is created by the flow of electric charges and gets knotted up before suddenly snapping and the energy from this process is released in the form of radiation bursts called solar flares or waves of plasma (CMEs).&nbsp;</p>

<p>In a statement, Hui Zhang, a co-author of both studies and a space physics professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute: "The processes are quite similar to here on Earth."&nbsp;</p>

<p>Zhang added that "the main differences are the size of the planet and Mercury has a weak magnetic field and virtually no atmosphere."&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>WATCH |&nbsp;10 things about China's recent space mission</strong></p>

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<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


On April 12, a gigantic plasma wave smashed into Mercury was launched by the Sun, the wave might have triggered a geomagnetic storm, Live Science reported. The process might also have scouring material from the planet's surface, the report added.

On April 12, a gigantic plasma wave smashed into Mercury was launched by the Sun, the wave might have triggered a geomagnetic storm, Live Science reported. The process might also have scouring material from the planet's surface, the report added. As per spaceweather.com, the wave that struck Mercury on April 12 happened after a powerful eruption was seen emanating from the Sun's far side a day before. The report said that the storm may have created a temporary atmosphere and even added material to Mercury's comet-like tail. It took the eruption, known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), took less than a day to strike Mercury which is the closest planet to Sun, the report added. As per the report, the plasma wave came from a sunspot. Experts have noted that the sunspots are areas that appear dark on the surface of the Sun and the reason behind it is they are cooler than other parts of the Sun's surface. The Live Science report added that a sunspot is created by the flow of electric charges and gets knotted up before suddenly snapping and the energy from this process is released in the form of radiation bursts called solar flares or waves of plasma (CMEs). In a statement, Hui Zhang, a co-author of both studies and a space physics professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute: "The processes are quite similar to here on Earth." Zhang added that "the main differences are the size of the planet and Mercury has a weak magnetic field and virtually no atmosphere." WATCH | 10 things about China's recent space mission × (With inputs from agencies)

Sun blasted Mercury with a plasma wave. What does it mean for Mercury's atmosphere?

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Sun blasted Mercury with a plasma wave. What does it mean for Mercury's atmosphere?