NASA | Tracking Space Weather for New Horizons

Leila Mays, a research scientist at Goddard, presents a solar-wind simulation called Enlil, developed by Dr. Dusan Odstrcil. The simulation acts as a weather map for the solar system, providing solar-wind predictions for the New Horizons flyby at Pluto. The video details New Horizons' trajectory from Earth in 2006 to its arrival at Pluto in 2015. It explains the solar wind's properties, including its speed and particle density, and how it interacts with coronal mass ejections from the sun. The simulation, which began six months prior, includes data on over 100 coronal mass ejections and highlights their journey to Pluto, taking about five months. The video concludes with a focus on Pluto as the New Horizons spacecraft approaches its closest flyby in mid-July.

What are coronal mass ejections and how do they interact with solar-wind structures?

When did the simulation begin and what does it include information about?