Clearly not
wanting to be outdone by a weekend of fireworks on earth, NASA scientists say
the sun fired off its biggest solar flare in years, just ahead of the holiday.
The moment
was captured in multiple wavelengths by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory and
was classified as an X-class eruption, the most powerful type of solar flare.
It was
immediately compared to the last major eruption, a gargantuan X8.2 event
captured in 2017.
New Region 2838 produced an impulsive X1 flare (R3 - Strong Radio Blackout) at 14:29 UTC on 03 July. pic.twitter.com/k7qx86G8Hg
— NOAA Space Weather (@NWSSWPC) July 3, 2021
Although
this recent X1.5 flare wasn’t as large, it still left its mark.
According to
the U.S. Space Weather Prediction Center, the flare resulted in a blast of
X-rays that hit the atmosphere, causing a radio blackout over the Atlantic
Ocean and coastal regions.
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