(NEXSTAR) — A massive solar flare, the largest in years, was spotted on the sun on New Year’s Eve, triggering a warning for some high-frequency radio users.
In an update Sunday night, NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) released an image of the flare, which appeared as a large bright dot on the sun. That image can be seen below.
“A flare is a burst of energy from the sun that typically lasts minutes to hours,” SWPC said. explain. This one in particular peaked just before 5pm ET on Sunday and was classified as an X5 flare.
Solar flares, like earthquakes, are classified based on their strength. NASA. The scale goes from B class at the bottom to C class, then M class, and finally X class. Each letter represents a 10x increase in energy output, and each class except the X class has a scale of 1 to 9. More than nine X-class flares can occur, with the largest ever recorded being X45 in 2003.
According to NASA, B-class and C-class flares are too weak for us to notice on Earth, and M-class flares “can cause short-term radio blackouts in polar regions and endanger astronauts.” “It could cause a small radiation storm.” X-class flares can cause more pronounced effects, like radiation storms that can affect satellites and give small doses of radiation to passengers on planes flying near the poles. NASA says they could also cause “global power transmission problems and global power outages.”
At X5, Sunday’s flare was much smaller than the flare recorded in 2003. However, it was the most powerful since September 2017, when the X8.2 flare was detected, according to SWPC.This flare is also prioritized A X2.8 solar flare was reported in the same region of the Sun on December 14th.. At the time, SWPC reported that the flare was “probably one of the largest solar radio events ever recorded.”
According to the SWPC, these are high-frequency radio signals (like an emergency manager) may notice “temporary signal degradation or complete loss on much of the sunlit side of the Earth” as a result of Sunday’s solar flare.
For everyone else, SWPC said there was “no need to worry.” While a coronal mass ejection (CME), which can cause auroral displays on Earth, was detected in conjunction with Sunday’s solar flare, it seems unlikely that auroras will be seen on Monday night.
SWPC’s current forecasts show only a few states have a chance of seeing the aurora on Monday night. Northern lights are likely to be seen in most of Alaska and Canada, but also in parts of Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. Northern lights are more likely to be seen in the state. The chances are slim (indicated by the light green and red “view line” on the map below).
Auroras ‘may become visible along the horizon’, SWPC says said on monday.
According to SWPC’s current forecast, there will be a small geomagnetic storm watch on Tuesday, but the chances of seeing the aurora borealis are even slimmer.
Solar activity and CMEs are expected to become more common in 2024 as the Sun continues Solar Cycle 25. A solar cycle is an 11-year cycle in which the sun reverses its magnetic poles, causing space weather events such as flares and CMEs. Magnetic material from the sun can reach Earth in just 15 to 18 hours, NOAA says explain.
CMEs impacting Earth can not only cause aurora borealis, but also affect our navigation, communications, and radio signals.
It may sound alarming, but even if the Northern Lights light up the sky, don’t expect a five-day power outage or grounded flights.
Power grids, aviation and communications systems have built-in resilience to prevent or reduce any impact, says US research professor Dr. Delores Knipp. Anne and H.J. Smead School of Aerospace Engineering and Science Speaking to Nexstar at the University of Colorado Boulder During October. In fact, we may not even realize that a solar storm (like Sunday’s solar flare) has hit us. SWPC’s Rob Steenberg previously told Nexstar:happens all the time No need to worry. ”
“Some people worry that a giant ‘killer solar flare’ might release enough energy to destroy the Earth, but that’s actually not possible.” NASA previously explained. plus, The solar cycle repeats every 11 years. This means that anyone over the age of 11 has already experienced a solar maximum (and was probably unaware of its occurrence).
An added bonus of the current solar cycle? NOAA has announced that the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024 will be a good show for skywatchers because it will occur near the cycle’s maximum. explain.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.