[youtube]Z5M7UxiaTWc[/youtube] The Sun unleashed the strongest solar flare of the year thus far, NASA says.The largest solar flare in four years was seen shot out from the sun and is currently in progress, according to NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO).
At 8:50 p.m. on Feb. 14, the sun let loose a powerful class X2.2 flare from sunspot active region (AR) 1158 in its southern hemisphere, the strongest so far in the current Solar Cycle 24.
“It has been the largest flare since December 6, 2006, so a long time coming,” said Phil Chamberlin, deputy project scientist at SDO, according to SPACE.com. “There were some clues that led us to believe the likelihood of moderate to large flares (M class or above) could occur, but we were all surprised when it actually happened to be a large X-class.”
The burst of solar activity followed a slightly smaller one that occurred on Sunday—a class M6.6 flare—also from sunspot AR 1158.
“It just means that Solar Cycle 24 is ramping up!” Chamberlin said. “This is the first of probably many more X-class flare to occur over the next 2 to 4 years as we reach the peak and then descend back down from solar cycle 24 maximum.”
According to spaceweather.com, the solar storm not only sent a wave of ultra-violet radiation towards Earth, but also triggered a coronal mass ejection (CME), visible as an expanding cloud comprising billions of tons of plasma, recorded by NASA’s STEREO-B probe.
“Geomagnetic storms are possible when the CME arrives 36 to 48 hours hence,” reported spaceweather.com “Stay tuned for updates.”
As well as disrupting satellite-based systems and power grids on Earth, CMEs can also trigger spectacular displays of the Northern Lights, also known as the aurora borealis. Spaceweather.com said a gust of solar wind hit Earth’s magnetic field last night, creating auroras around the Arctic Circle for Valentine’s Day.
At 8:50 p.m. on Feb. 14, the sun let loose a powerful class X2.2 flare from sunspot active region (AR) 1158 in its southern hemisphere, the strongest so far in the current Solar Cycle 24.
“It has been the largest flare since December 6, 2006, so a long time coming,” said Phil Chamberlin, deputy project scientist at SDO, according to SPACE.com. “There were some clues that led us to believe the likelihood of moderate to large flares (M class or above) could occur, but we were all surprised when it actually happened to be a large X-class.”
The burst of solar activity followed a slightly smaller one that occurred on Sunday—a class M6.6 flare—also from sunspot AR 1158.
“It just means that Solar Cycle 24 is ramping up!” Chamberlin said. “This is the first of probably many more X-class flare to occur over the next 2 to 4 years as we reach the peak and then descend back down from solar cycle 24 maximum.”
According to spaceweather.com, the solar storm not only sent a wave of ultra-violet radiation towards Earth, but also triggered a coronal mass ejection (CME), visible as an expanding cloud comprising billions of tons of plasma, recorded by NASA’s STEREO-B probe.
“Geomagnetic storms are possible when the CME arrives 36 to 48 hours hence,” reported spaceweather.com “Stay tuned for updates.”
As well as disrupting satellite-based systems and power grids on Earth, CMEs can also trigger spectacular displays of the Northern Lights, also known as the aurora borealis. Spaceweather.com said a gust of solar wind hit Earth’s magnetic field last night, creating auroras around the Arctic Circle for Valentine’s Day.
