the sun is having unusual activity

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NASA just recorded the biggest sun solar flare in nearly a decade
NASA captured images of two massive sun solar flares this week, one was the biggest since at least 2008.

The first flare was seen at 6:15 a.m. EDT and the second, larger flare, peaked at 10:36 a.m. EDT Sept. 7, NASA reported. This makes five large flares spotted in the same region since Sept. 4.

When electromagnetic radiation from the sun erupts, lasting minutes to hours, solar flares become visible, according to the Space Weather Prediction Center. Flares give off radiation that cannot pass through Earth's atmosphere, but can affect radio and GPS signals, which is why some might have noticed a radio station go silent this week.

The effects of the flare could still be visible in the northern skies over the weekend. Those in high-latitude regions might be able to see auroras.



Sun continues to emit solar flares
After NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured images of two significant solar flares on Wednesday, the US space agency said the Sun again emitted two mid-level solar flares on Thursday.

The first peaked at 6:15 a.m. EDT. The second, larger flare, peaked at 10:36 a.m. EDT, NASA said.

These two flares are, in fact, the fourth and fifth sizable flares from the same active region since September 4.

Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation. Harmful radiation from a flare cannot pass through Earth’s atmosphere to physically affect humans on the ground.

However, when intense enough, they can disturb the atmosphere in the layer where GPS and communications signals travel.

The first flare emitted on Thursday was classified as an M7.3 flare, the second as X1.3.

X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

The sun is acting pretty strange right now
Over the past few days, massive sunspots on the sun’s surface have made their presence felt here on Earth. The spots, which appear as dark regions on the star’s surface, are areas where the sun’s complex magnetic fields affect its outer layer, and signal the possibility of solar flares and coronal mass ejections, or CMEs. When those particles from the sun arrive at Earth, they can cause serious issues with communications satellites and even make life a bit more dangerous for astronauts living in orbit.

Sunspots and solar flares are something we’ve come to expect from the sun, but their timing this time around is of particular interest (and some would argue, concern) for scientists. That’s because the sun is currently approaching its solar minimum, which is the bottom end of its 11-year activity cycle in which events like solar flares and CMEs should be an extremely rare occurrence. On the upswing, when the sun reaches its solar maximum, researchers fully expect and await such events, but that’s not the case right now.

And it’s not just the timing that’s causing researchers to raise their eyebrows, but also the size of the flare itself. On Wednesday, September 6th, the largest solar flare since 2005 was recorded. That flare, which was classified as X-Class (the most significant type) with a rating of X9.3, still pales in comparison to the all-time record, which was an X20 flare in early 2001.

It’s also worth noting that not everyone in the scientific community finds the event all that odd. Rob Steenburgh, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration notes that it might not have been expected, but it’s more interesting than worrisome. “Even though we’re approaching solar minimum, there can still be large regions and events like this,” Steenburgh explains. “They’re less frequent/common, but no less impressive.”
"Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things."
George Carlin
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