Monster X-class flare launches massive solar storm towards Earth — and could trigger auroras this weekend

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Monster X-class flare launches massive solar storm towards Earth — and could trigger auroras this weekend

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Credit: NASA/SDO

The sun has unleashed an enormous X-class solar flare, temporarily triggering a radio ********* above parts of the U.S. and unleashing a hefty coronal mass ejection (CME) that will likely slam into our planet, potentially triggering vibrant aurora displays later this week.

The X-class solar flare — the most powerful type the sun can produce — exploded outward from sunspot AR3842 near the solar equator at around 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday (Oct. 1). The flare had a magnitude of X7.1, making it the second most powerful solar ********** of the current solar cycle, Solar Cycle 25, which began in 2019. The most powerful flare was a monster X8.7 magnitude blast in May, which was the most powerful flare in the last seven years.

Radiation from Tuesday’s supercharged flare bypassed Earth’s magnetic shield, or magnetosphere, and ionized the upper parts of the upper atmosphere, creating a temporary radio ********* above large parts of the Pacific Ocean, including Hawaii. The ********** also hurled a

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— a cloud of fast-moving plasma and radiation — into space, which NASA predicts will collide with Earth on Saturday (Oct. 5), according to

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.

When the CME hits our planet, it will likely trigger a disturbance in the magnetosphere, known as a geomagnetic storm, that enables solar particles to penetrate deep into the atmosphere and trigger vibrant aurora displays at unusually low latitudes. A similar geomagnetic storm occurred in mid-August after

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Related:

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Looped video footage of a diagram showing a CME directed at Earth

The latest solar outburst is another sign that

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— the peak of the sun’s roughly 11-year solar cycle, which occurs right before its magnetic field completely flips.

Scientists had initially predicted that the solar maximum would begin next year and be less active than the peaks of past solar cycles. However, it quickly became obvious that the sun’s explosive peak would arrive sooner and be more active than expected, forcing researchers to update their forecasts for the first time in their history.

2024 has already been rife with solar activity. In May, our planet experienced its most powerful geomagnetic storm for 21 years after a barrage of CMEs, which triggered potentially the most widespread auroras for 500 years. And in August, the number of visible sunspots hit a 23-year high.

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A diagram showing the location of radio blackouts on Earth after the flare

So far this year, the sun has unleashed a total of 41 X-class solar flares, which is more than the last nine years combined, according to

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—Gargantuan sunspot 15-Earths wide shoots powerful X-class flare toward Earth

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Over the next few months, the number of geomagnetic storms and auroras could also spike further as Earth’s magnetic field

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around the fall equinox.

Throughout the rest of the solar maximum, which could last for at least another year, there is an increased chance of the sun unleashing even more immense solar storms on par with the

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— the most powerful solar storm on record. If such a storm were to hit us today, it could disrupt ground-based infrastructure, such as the power grid, and knock out most of our satellites, potentially causing trillions of dollars worth of damages.

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