Scrub CME speed from under 250 km/s to nearly 3000 km/s, then play or drag progress as a plasma cloud expands from the Sun toward Earth and watch the travel-time estimate update.
NOAA SWPC lists CME speeds from slower than 250 km/s to nearly 3000 km/s. The fastest Earth-directed events can arrive in 15-18 hours; slower and typical arrivals take several days, often about 1-3 days. NASA GSFC describes masses in the billions-of-tons class (~1e16 g).
Drag to orbit and scroll or pinch to zoom. Press Play or Pause, Reset, or scrub speed and progress. For one famous historical storm see the Carrington Event 3D Explorer; for the ambient wind bubble see the Solar Wind Heliosphere 3D Explorer.
Coronal Mass Ejection 3D Explorer
This browser explorer shows a coronal mass ejection as an expanding plasma cloud leaving the Sun's corona and crossing the compressed Sun-Earth gap, with travel time computed from the real 1 AU distance and your scrubbed speed.
A CME is a discrete ejection of coronal plasma and magnetic field - distinct from the steady ambient solar wind. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center publishes CME speeds from slower than 250 km/s to nearly 3000 km/s. The fastest Earth-directed events can reach Earth in as little as 15-18 hours; slower and typical events take several days, commonly about 1-3 days. NASA GSFC overviews put the mass scale at billions of tons (~1e16 g class).
- Scrub CME speed across the published NOAA SWPC range
- Play, pause, reset, or drag progress from the Sun toward Earth
- Read travel-time estimates that use the real 1 AU distance (149,600,000 km)
- Compare with sibling pages for a historical storm and for ambient solar wind
- Drag to orbit the camera, scroll or pinch to zoom
- Runs fully in the browser with the vendored three.js engine - no account, no upload
Space-weather teachers use the speed scrub to show why a fast Earth-directed CME shortens warning time. Readers who already know solar wind structure use this page for the discrete ejection and arrival clock that ambient-wind explorers do not teach.
| Figure | Published value |
|---|---|
| CME speed range | <250 to nearly 3000 km/s (NOAA SWPC) |
| Fastest Earth-directed arrival | 15-18 hours (NOAA SWPC) |
| Slower / typical arrival | several days; common ~1-3 days |
| Mass scale | billions of tons (~1e16 g class, NASA GSFC) |
| 1 AU distance used for travel time | 149,600,000 km |
For one famous historical geomagnetic storm, open the Carrington Event 3D Explorer. For the ambient wind bubble around the Sun, open the Solar Wind Heliosphere 3D Explorer.
Everything renders on your device with WebGL. The 3D engine loads once (about 0.7 MB) and is cached; no scene data is sent to a server.
This is an educational approximation - on-screen Sun-Earth distance is compressed for readability, while travel time uses the real 1 AU distance divided by the scrubbed speed. It is not an MHD solar-wind model.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a coronal mass ejection?
A CME is a large expulsion of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun's corona. Speeds range from slower than 250 km/s to nearly 3000 km/s (NOAA SWPC), and masses can reach billions of tons (~1e16 g class, NASA GSFC).
How long does a CME take to reach Earth?
The fastest Earth-directed CMEs can arrive in 15-18 hours. Slower and typical events take several days; common arrivals are often about 1-3 days (NOAA SWPC).
How is this different from the Carrington Event page?
This explorer teaches the general CME speed range and Sun-to-Earth travel clock. The Carrington Event page focuses on one historical storm in 1859 - open that sibling when you want that specific event.
How is this different from the solar-wind heliosphere page?
Solar wind is the ambient outflow that fills the heliosphere. A CME is a discrete ejection riding through that medium. Use the Solar Wind Heliosphere explorer for the ambient bubble; use this page for a discrete cloud and arrival estimate.
Are the on-screen distances to scale?
No. The Sun-Earth gap is compressed so the expanding cloud stays readable. Travel time uses the real 1 AU distance of 149,600,000 km divided by your scrubbed speed.
Does this page solve MHD solar-wind equations?
No. It is an educational explorer using published NOAA SWPC and NASA GSFC figures. It does not solve magnetohydrodynamics or predict real-time space weather.