Active sunspot 1121 has unleashed one of the brightest x-ray solar flares in years, an M5.4-class eruption.
Radiation from the flare created a wave of ionization in Earth's upper atmosphere that altered the propagation of low-frequency radio waves. There was, however, no bright CME hurled in our direction, so the event is unlikely to produce auroras in the nights ahead.
Radiation from the flare created a wave of ionization in Earth's upper atmosphere that altered the propagation of low-frequency radio waves. There was, however, no bright CME hurled in our direction, so the event is unlikely to produce auroras in the nights ahead.
This is the third M-flare in as many days from this increasingly active sunspot. So far none of the eruptions has been squarely Earth-directed, but this could change in the days ahead as the sun's rotation turns the active region toward our planet.