Month: May 2024

Strong Solar Flare Erupts from Sun

The Sun emitted a strong solar flare, peaking at 1:44 p.m. ET on May 9, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event.

A composite image of the Sun in blue, green, and red shows an X-class flare as a large, bright burst of white and red light in the lower right.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare – as seen in the bright flash in the lower right – on May 9, 2024. The composite image combines three wavelengths of extreme ultraviolet light that highlight the extremely hot material in flares and which is colorized in green, blue, and red. Credit: NASA/SDO

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

This flare is classified as an X1.1 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov/, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.

 

Sun Releases 2 Strong Solar Flares

The Sun emitted two strong solar flares, peaking at 5:40 p.m. ET on May 8, 2024, and 5:13 a.m. ET on May 9, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured images of the events.

On the left, a teal Sun against a black background. The Sun has bright spots, especially on the far left and far right, but the brightest spot is slight to the right of center. There there is a bright flash — the flare. On the right, the same Sun, shown in red. The bright flash of the second flare is in the same spot as the first.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured these images of the solar flares – as seen in the bright flash in the lower right – on May 8, 2024 (left) and May 9, 2024 (right). The images show a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares. The left image is colorized in teal and the right image is colorized in red. Credit: NASA/SDO

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

The first flare is classified as an X1.0 flare and the second flare is classified as an X2.2 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov/, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.

Sun Releases 2 Strong Flares

The Sun emitted two strong solar flares, the first peaking at 9:41 p.m. ET on May 7, 2024, and the second peaking at 1:09 a.m. ET on May 8, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured images of the events.

A split screen view of the Sun, shown in a dark orange and black. On the left, the May 8 flare is a bright white burrst of sputtering solar material. On the right, the May 7 flare is a bright white burst of solar material seen near the black expanse of space.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured these images of the solar flares — as seen in the bright flashes in the left image (May 8 flare) and the right image (May 7 flare). The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares and which is colorized in orange. Credit: NASA/SDO

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

Both flares were classified as X1.0 flares. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov/, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.

Sun Releases Three Strong Flares

The Sun emitted three strong solar flares. The first flare peaked at 2:01 A.M. ET on May 5, 2024, and the second peaked at 7:54 A.M. ET on May 5, 2024. The third peaked at 2:35 A.M. ET on May 6, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event.

A cropped view of the Sun, colorized in teal. The Sun is rotating toward the right. As it rotates, a bright real active region ejects solar material several times.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured these images of the solar flares — as seen in the bright flashes in the upper right — on May 5 and May 6, 2024. The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares and which is colorized in teal. Credit: NASA/SDO

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

The first flare is classified as an X1.3 flare. The second flare is classified as an X1.2 flare. The third flare is classified as an X4.5 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov/, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.

Sun Releases Strong Flare

The Sun emitted a strong solar flare, peaking at 10:22 p.m. ET on May 2, 2024. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the Sun constantly, captured an image of the event.

The Sun, colorized in teal. There are many bright active areas on the star, including on the bottom left and bottom right areas. Toward the upper middle of the Sun, there is a bright flash, creating an "X" shape.
NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare — as seen in the bright flash toward the upper middle area of the Sun — on May 2, 2024. The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares and which is colorized in teal. Credit: NASA/SDO

Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy. Flares and solar eruptions can impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts.

This flare is classified as an X1.6 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.

To see how such space weather may affect Earth, please visit NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center https://spaceweather.gov/, the U.S. government’s official source for space weather forecasts, watches, warnings, and alerts. NASA works as a research arm of the nation’s space weather effort. NASA observes the Sun and our space environment constantly with a fleet of spacecraft that study everything from the Sun’s activity to the solar atmosphere, and to the particles and magnetic fields in the space surrounding Earth.