The Sunspot AR29 eruption, generating a powerful M5.5-class solar flare, recorded by the Solar Dynamics Observatory of NASA in an extreme ultraviolet flash, has recently been reported.
As specified in a report from India Today, entering its new phase, activities on the sun have picked up pace as the bright star discharged a major flare.
The Spaceweather.com specified that during the flare, the pulse of X-rays had ionized the top of the atmosphere of Earth, resulting in shortwave radio surrounding the Indian Ocean.
Also indicated in the report, aviators, ham radio operators, and mariners in the site may have noticed extraordinary propagation impacts at frequencies below 30 MHz.
Typically, solar flares take place in active regions, which are sites on the Sun marked by the strong magnetic fields' presence, usually linked to groups of sunspots.
As the evolution of magnetic fields occurs, such flares can reach a point of instability and emit energy in various forms.
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In a screengrab taken from a handout timelapse sequence provided by NASA / SDO, a solar spot in the center of the Sun is captured from which the first X-class flare was emitted in four years on February 14, 2011.
Solar Flare
A solar flare is an abrupt, fast, and strong explosion on the surface of the Sun that takes place when huge amounts of energy stored in magnetic fields are quickly emitted.
Essentially, the explosion discharges radiation through the length and breadth of the universe, plunging them towards planets in the solar system. Such radiation comprises radio waves, gamma rays, and x-rays.
There are three stages involved in a solar flare. These include the precursor stage, which is the first, where the discharge of magnetic energy is stimulated with soft X-Ray emissions.
Then, there's the second impulsive stage, when protons and electrons are accelerated to energies corresponding to a million electron volts. Then, the third and last stage engages X-Rays' gradual accumulation or build-up and decay.
The eruption recorded late this week has been classified as an M class, which is medium in size. They can lead to radio blackouts that impact the Earth's polar regions. Sometimes, minor radiation storms follow an M-class flare.
Possibility of Geomagnetic Unrest
A report from spaceweather.com said there's a possibility of an occurrence of geomagnetic unrest on January 22, 23, and 24, as a series of "Coronal Mass Ejections" or CMEs bring glancing blows to the magnetic field of Earth.
Two of these CMEs were thrown by M-class flares into space from departing sunspot AR2020; a third has left the surface of the sun, as well. Moreover, while they will not hit the Earth directly, together, these three could ignite minor G1-class geomagnetic storms.
Essentially, a geomagnetic storm, as detailed in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration site, is a major disturbance of the magnetosphere of Earth that takes place when there is an extremely efficient exchange of energy from the solar wind into the space environment that surrounds this planet.
Aside from the M-class flares, there are two other classifications or categories of the solar flares. One is the X-class flares, which are big and major occurrences that can stimulate planet-wide radio blackouts and long-lasting radiation storms. The other category is called the "C-class flares," which are small with very few evident effects on this planet.
Related information about the solar geomagnetic storm is shown on NEWS9 Live's YouTube video below:
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