solar storm nasa

In case you have been wondering why solar activity has increased exponentially over the last few months, you should know that scientists have predicted that the peak of the current solar cycle will arrive by the middle of 2025. The peak, also known as Solar Maximum, is the phase when the solar activity is at its highest in the 12-year period of the cycle. That's why we saw two separate solar flare incidents last week, both of which triggered a radio blackout on Earth. And now, NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) has…

On June 20, an X1.1-class solar flare erupted on the Sun, making it one of the biggest explosions seen this year. The flare sparked a shortwave radio blackout across North America that affected wireless communications for as long as 30 minutes after the flare first erupted. NASA also spotted a massive coronal mass ejection (CME) cloud escaping after the blast. This CME is extremely potent and has been classified as Type II solar emission. This dangerous CME is capable of delivering an extremely dangerous solar storm.…

On June 9, an M2.5-class solar flare eruption was spotted by the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). The flare was produced in a particularly unstable sunspot AR3331, which is still in the Earth's view. The eruption sparked a short-wave radio blackout in Mexico and the southern region of the USA. It also released a coronal mass ejection (CME) cloud into space which is going to strike the Earth and spark a solar storm today, June 13, as per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Check the…

The second half of May and the first week of June were relatively quiet in terms of solar activity. The Earth did suffer a radio blackout earlier this week when sunspot AR3327 exploded and produced an M4.6-class solar flare. The sunspot has not exploded since then and it is likely that like the other sunspots present on the Earth-facing side of the Sun, it will also dissipate. However, the next week might bring trouble for our planet as the NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) has spotted a high number of…

The year 2023 has seen some of the most intense solar storms in the last decade. We have seen two G4-class solar storms, multiple G3-class storms and a multitude of solar flare-related radio blackouts. Astronomers have realized that the next catastrophic solar storm event may not be too far away. But with how things are, there is not much we can do about it. While NASA has its own prediction models, their accuracy is not too high. In fact, in most cases, we cannot correctly predict when the storm will strike till it has…

After days of warnings for a G3-class geomagnetic storm, yesterday the coronal mass ejection (CME) finally hit the Earth and it turned out to be a dud. The impact only sparked minor G1-class storms briefly before being dispersed by the planet's magnetosphere. While the Earth was lucky in this encounter, soon a far bigger problem is coming its way. Researchers have spotted a huge sunspot group on the farside of the Sun and it is big enough to change the way the Sun vibrates. It is expected to face our planet the next week…

On April 30, the forecasters from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned about a sunspot, named AR3288, which was growing at an exponential rate and contained unstable delta-class magnetic fields. Just a day after the warning, the sunspot exploded, blasting a powerful solar flare in the direction of the Earth. As per NASA, it was an M7-class flare eruption and it sparked a radio blackout over the Atlantic Ocean region. The bigger question now is whether a solar storm is coming for the Earth.A…

It has been almost a week since the last solar storm hit the Earth. And it was a relatively minor storm that did not really affect us much. The worst was experienced over the Indian Ocean region where a temporary radio blackout was observed. But things are about to change quickly for the worse. NASA has issued a warning over a major solar storm strike on Earth. The initial hit is expected tomorrow, April 19, when glancing blows are expected and on April 20, a massive direct hit has been predicted. If this solar storm…

The Earth has been plagued by solar storm events this year. And while we have seen some really intense storms, including a terrifying G4-class geomagnetic storm last week, none have had the destructive effect of the one that hit the Earth on February 3, 2022. On that day, SpaceX ignored a solar storm forecast and went ahead with its launch schedule to deploy a fleet of its Starlink satellites. However, shortly after the launch, the solar storm ended up destroying as many as 40 of its satellites. NASA has conducted an…

Knowing any kind of upcoming threat can help you prepare for it in advance. There are several events happening in space like asteroids rushing towards Earth, solar storms, and more, which can pose a serious threat for our planet. However, NASA keeps an eye on the movement of asteroids to get fair warning of any impending collision with Earth. What about a solar storm? Notably, NASA has turned to AI predictions now. "Like a tornado siren for life-threatening storms in America's heartland, a new computer model that…