With the strong solar flare happening this week, the first three months of 2023 have already had the same number of eruptions as the full year 2022
It’s still March 2023, and with the detection of another solar flare this week, the Sun has already produced the same amount of high-intensity outbursts as it did in the entire year 2022. These outbursts are class X, the highest level in the scale – and they become more frequent as our star approaches its period of maximum activity (called solar maximum). The next peak is expected in 2025.
This time’s event was X1.2 category, took place on Wednesday (29) and was born from Sunspots cataloged as AR3256, near the southwestern edge of the Sun. The resulting radiation ionized our upper atmosphere and caused a shortwave radio blackout in Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.
The explosions on the Sun are classified by letters: A, B, C, M and X (from the weakest to the strongest). Although X is the last letter in the solar flare intensity classification, there is a sub-classification for all letters, ranging from 1 to 9. This means that an X9 explosion is 10 times larger than an X1 event.
A coronal mass ejection (CME) accompanied the explosion shortly after, but scientists from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have determined that it will not reach Earth.
Despite this, researchers are still expecting some geomagnetic storms for next weekend, when the contents of the coronal holes previously ejected to reach Earth.
One of the ongoing solar winds is estimated to arrive on April 1, causing some polar auroras. No other CMEs appear to be heading our way in the next few days, except for a slim chance of one hitting us on April 3rd.
The Sun, in turn, seems to be preparing some class M eruptions on Friday (31), from sunspot AR3256. However, Earth escapes this region as it rotates further towards the southeastern edge of the Sun, about to position itself on the other side of our star.
Source: spaceweather.com
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Source: Terra
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
