This page was generated automatically. To view the article in its initial location, you can access the link below:
https://www.space.com/the-universe/sun/sun-erupts-with-powerful-x1-2-solar-flare-causes-radio-blackouts-photo
If you wish to remove this article from our website, please get in touch with us
The sun commenced 2025 with a spectacular event as it emitted a significant solar flare this morning.
The X-class solar flare peaked at X.12 at 6:40 a.m. EST (1140 GMT) on Friday (Jan. 3), unleashing a surge of energy from a sunspot known as AR 3947 and causing a radio blackout in sections of the Southern Atlantic, parts of Africa, and eastern South America. During such blackouts, there may be a complete or partial interruption of high-frequency (HF) radio signals in the areas illuminated by the sun at that time.
Solar flares are categorized on a 4-class scale, with each ascending class being ten times more potent than the one below it. X-class flares are the strongest, followed by M-class, C-class, and then the lowest, B. In addition to the letter representing the class, a number accompanies it to denote the specific flare’s intensity (in this example, a 1.2).
This occurrence was classified as an R3 blackout on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) Space Weather Scale, which assesses how the solar flare can lead to radio blackouts and any potential effects associated with it. The range of the scale is from R1 to R5, indicating that this blackout event was labeled “Strong,” just below “Severe” (R4) and “Extreme” (R5).
In the most recent SWPC forecast discussion, researchers noted that no coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were detected that could affect Earth following the solar flare.
CMEs consist of magnetic fields and plumes of plasma that can generate geomagnetic storms on Earth. Such storms have the potential to disrupt electrical grids and may also lead to auroras in lower latitudes, commonly referred to as the aurora borealis or the northern lights.
SWPC forecasters additionally indicated that more minor to moderate radio blackouts are expected alongside further activity from the active sunspot regions until the weekend concludes (Jan. 5).
A Geomagnetic Storm Watch is also active for a Category 1 storm (G1), the least intense on the scale, during the same timeframe, attributed to a CME that took place earlier this week. The optimal chances for viewing auroras from this event would be in higher latitudinal areas, such as Alaska and Canada.
This page was generated automatically. To view the article in its initial location, you can access the link below:
https://www.space.com/the-universe/sun/sun-erupts-with-powerful-x1-2-solar-flare-causes-radio-blackouts-photo
If you wish to remove this article from our website, please get in touch with us
