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Beginning on Friday, the sun produced the largest flares since April
The strongest of the three, M7.6, peaked at 1:16 am on July 23
Two flares orginated from the AR2565-AR2567 sunspot complex
Although the sun is in a period of low activity, it isn’t staying completely quiet.
Over the weekend, the 4.5 billion year old ball of gas produced three mid-strength solar flares that have been deemed the most powerful to occur in 2016.
Captured by Nasa’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, these flares were classified as M-level flares -- the category just below the most intense X-class flares.
TRIPLE WHAMMY FLARES
Nasa’s Solar Dynamics Observatory saw the sun produce three mid-strength solar flares that have been deemed the most powerful for 2016 over the weekend.
These flares were classified as M-level flares -- the category just below the most intense X-class flares.
Beginning on Friday June 22, the sun produced the largest explosions since April – which was kicked-off by an M5 at 10:11pm EST.
Following behind was the strongest of the three, M7.6, which peaked at 1:16am on July 23 and the grand finale was an M5.5 – it reached its height just 15 minutes after the second flare.
These two orientated from the AR2565-AR2567 sunspot complex, which is a region of the sun known for its powerful magnetic fields.
Two years ago, scientists warned that the sun’s activity was the lowest it has been in 100 years.
Researcher believe the solar lull could cause major changes, and say there is a 20% chance it could lead to 'major changes' in temperatures. ‘M-class’ flares are deemed ‘medium’ flares that just fall short of the most intense category, ‘X-class’.
But this weekend provided the Solar Dynamics Observatory team with quite a show.
Beginning on Friday, the sun produced the largest explosions since April – which was kicked-off by an M5 at 10:11 pm EST in the Active Region 12567
Following behind was the strongest of the three, M7.6, which peaked at 1:16 am on July 23 and the grand finale was an M5.5 – it reached its height just 15 minutes after the second flare.
These two originated from the AR2565-AR2567 sunspot complex, which is a region of the sun known for its powerful magnetic fields. Solar flares are brief, powerful eruptions of radiation that occur on the surface of the sun.Although harmful, the radiation from a flare is not capable of passing through Earth’s atmosphere.However, they are strong enough to disrupt the atmosphere in the layer where our GPS and communication signals travel.
Source: Dailymail
