The Sun certainly had a busy weekend.
Our stars are multiple M-class Solar flare coronal mass ejections (eruptions of magnetic fields and solar plasma), and now to cap it all off, a gigantic X-class solar flare.
of The eruption reached its peak The eruption occurred at 10:33 p.m. on July 28 (2:33 a.m. EDT on July 29), and caused a blackout of shortwave radio signals across much of the sunlit part of the Earth, including much of Asia and Australia.
Solar flares are Sun The Sun’s surface emits powerful bursts of electromagnetic radiation. These flares occur when there is a sudden release of magnetic energy stored in the Sun’s atmosphere.
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The X-class solar flare peaked at 10:33 pm EDT (2:33 am GMT on July 29). (Image courtesy of NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center)
Radiation from solar flares Speed of Light Upon arrival, it ionizes the upper atmosphere. This ionization creates a dense environment for high-frequency shortwave radio signals that allow long-distance communication. But these radio waves Electronic In the ionized layer, increased collisions result in energy loss, which can cause the radio signal to be degraded or even completely absorbed.
This signal loss was detected over most of Asia and Australia during the recent X-flare eruption.
Shortwave radio broadcasts were cut off in Asia and Australia. (Image courtesy of NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center)
Solar flares are classified according to their size, with class X being the most powerful. M class flares are one tenth as strong as class X, C class flares are one tenth as strong as class M, B class flares are one tenth as strong as class C, and A class flares are one tenth as strong as class B and have no noticeable effect on the Sun. Earth Each class is further divided into numbers from 1 to 10 (or higher for X-class flares) to indicate the relative strength of the flare.
NASA’s solar observation satellite, the Solar Dynamics Observatory, captured an X1.5 class solar flare erupting from the sun on July 29, 2024. (Image courtesy of Helioviewer.org)
The striking X-flares on July 28th and 29th were measured at X1.5. Space Weather Live erupted from sunspot region 3764. Forecasters said it was aimed at Earth. CME Accompanied by solar flare According to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center: Scientists are awaiting coronagraph images to determine if this activity will be followed by an Earth-directed CME.
If so, it would not be the only CME heading toward Earth. There are currently several CMEs heading toward Earth, Expected to arrive on July 30th Their presence can cause strong geomagnetic storms, Aurora In mid-latitudes.