The sun erupted in a massive solar flare, the largest of the year, sending a wave of solar activity that could affect Earth starting on Tuesday.
A powerful X5.1-class flare, capable of disrupting satellites, high-frequency radio and high-altitude flights, burst from the sun today.
The flare caused a radio blackout across Europe and Africa around 5am ET, briefly affecting aviation, maritime, emergency, GPS, radar and satellite communications.
Space scientist Steph Yardley described the solar activity as ‘not very common,’ noting these extremely energetic particles from the sun are so strong that ground-based detectors can pick them up. ‘There have been 75 recorded since 1942,’ she posted on X.
NOAA scientists are monitoring a possible coronal mass ejection (CME), a huge cloud of solar material and magnetic fields, moving at about 3,000 miles per second.
If it is headed for our planet, it could trigger a strong geomagnetic storm, disturbing Earth’s magnetic field overnight into Wednesday.
If it is headed for Earth, it could trigger a strong geomagnetic storm, disturbing Earth’s magnetic field overnight into Wednesday. Auroras may appear as far south as Pennsylvania, Iowa, and Oregon.
Power grids, GPS navigation, and HF radio communications could all be affected, NOAA shared in an alert.
Officials have issued a G3 Watch, warning that another CME from November 10 may arrive on the evening of November 11 and continue into November 12.
This flare came from sunspot AR4274, which has been highly active in recent days, producing two other significant flares on November 9 and 10.
Sunspots are temporary, darker patches on the sun’s surface that are cooler than the surrounding areas.
Officials warned that high-energy particles from the sun are triggering radiation alerts.
Passengers and crew on high-altitude polar flights may face slightly increased exposure. Satellites in low-Earth orbit, especially those flying over the poles, are vulnerable to temporary electrical disruptions.
Tuesday’s flare joins a recent series of powerful eruptions from the sunspot, including an X1.7-class flare on November 9 and an X1.2 flare on November 10.
Solar flares are classified by their X-ray brightness, measured in a specific wavelength range by satellites.
They fall into five main categories, A, B, C, M, and X, ranging from the weakest to the most powerful.
Each class represents roughly a tenfold increase in energy, with X-class flares being the strongest and capable of disrupting satellites, radio communications, and even high-altitude flights.
Within each class, flares are further ranked from 1 to 9 to indicate their relative strength, with higher numbers producing more intense effects.
This is a developing story… More updates to come.
