Science - solar-flare

Apr

2013

1:35pm, EDT

Sun unleashes year's biggest solar flare

NASA / SDO

This full-disk view of the sun was captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory on Thursday during the strongest solar flare yet seen in 2013.

By Tariq Malik
Space.com

The most powerful solar flare of the year erupted from the sun Thursday, sparking a temporary radio blackout on Earth, NASA officials say.

The solar flareoccurred at 3:16 a.m. EDT and registered as a M6.5-class sun storm, a relatively midlevel flare on the scale of solar tempests. It coincided with an eruption of super-hot solar plasma known as a coronal mass ejection.

"This is the strongest flare seen so far in 2013," NASA spokeswoman Karen Fox explained in a statement. "Increased numbers of flares are quite common at the moment, since the sun's normal 11-year cycle is ramping up toward solar maximum, which is expected in late 2013."

NASA's sun-watching Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded a stunning video of the strongest solar flare of 2013, showing it in extreme detail. The spacecraft is one of several space-based observatories keeping track of the sun's solar weather events.

NASA officials dubbed today's solar flare as a "spring fling" for the sun, which has been relatively calm as it heads into its peak activity period.

Today's M-class solar flare was about 10 times weaker than X-class flares, which are the strongest flares the sun can unleash. M-class solar flares are the weakest solar events that can still trigger space weather effects near Earth, such as communications interruptions or spectacular northern lights displays.

NASA / SDO

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a powerful M6.5-class flare, the strongest of 2013 at the time, at 3:16 EDT on Thursday. This image shows a combination of light in wavelengths of 131 and 171 Angstroms.

The solar flare triggered a short-lived radio communications blackout on Earth that registered as an R2 event (on a scale of R1 to R5), according to space weather scales maintained NOAA, Fox added.

When aimed directly at Earth, major solar flares and coronal mass ejections can pose a threat to astronauts and satellites in orbit. They can interfere with GPS navigation and communications satellite signals in space, as well as impair power systems infrastructure on Earth.

Fox said NASA officials are tracking the coronal mass ejection to see if it poses any space weather concerns for Earth. Meanwhile, the Solar Dynamics Observatory and other space observatories will continue to monitor the sun's activity.

"Humans have tracked this solar cycle continuously since it was discovered, and it is normal for there to be many flares a day during the sun's peak activity," Fox explained.

Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.

Feb

2013

1:05pm, EST

Sun unleashes solar eruption at Earth during long flare

ESA&NASA/SOHO

One of the views of the coronal mass ejection released by the sun on Feb. 9, 2013 as seen by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory.

By Tariq Malik, SPACE.com Managing Editor

A long-lasting solar flare erupted from the sun early Saturday, triggering an intense sun eruption aimed squarely at Earth. The solar storm, however, should not endanger satellites or astronauts in space, but could amplify auroras on Earth, NASA says.

The solar eruption —called a coronal mass ejection —occurred at 2:30 a.m. EST (0730 GMT) on Saturday during a minor, but long-duration, flare. It hurled a wave of charged particles at Earth at speeds of about 1.8 million miles per hour.

The sun eruption was captured in photos by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), a joint mission by NASA and the European Space Agency.

Coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, are eruptions of charged solar material that fling solar particles out into space. When aimed at Earth, they can reach the planet between one and three days later, and cause geomagnetic storms when they interact with the planet's magnetic field. They can also amplify the northern and southern lights displays over the Earth's poles.

ESA&NASA/SOHO

Three views over time of the coronal mass ejection released by the sun on Feb. 9, 2013 as seen by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory.

""In the past, CMEs at this strength have had little effect," NASA officials said in a statement. "They may cause auroras near the poles but are unlikely to disrupt electrical systems on Earth or interfere with GPS or satellite-based communications systems."

Saturday's solar flare and sun eruption apparently also caught the attention astronauts living on the International Space Station, even though the solar weather event will have little impact on their daily routine.

"We live right next to a star," wrote Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, who currently lives on the International Space Station, in a Twitter post. "Today it ejected a huge blob at 500 mi/sec. But not to worry — should be good aurorae."

The sun is currently in an active period of its 11-year solar weather cycle, and is expected to reach its peak this year. The sun's current weather cycle is known as Solar Cycle 24.

The SOHO spacecraft and several other sun-watching observatories, such as NASA's twin Stereo spacecraft and the Solar Dynamics Observatory, constantly monitor the star for changes in solar weather.

Editor's note: If you snap an amazing photo northern lights photo or any other night sky object, that you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, send photos, comments and your name and location to managing editor Tariq Malik at spacephotos@space.com.

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