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Sun erupts in biggest storm in years
Earth in way of superhot gas cloud
(CNN) -- One of the largest known solar flares erupted from the sun on Tuesday, heralding a storm of supercharged particles that could hit Earth within a day or two.
The outburst was classified an X18 flare, making it the third largest on record, according to Paal Brekke, a project scientist with the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), a sun-watching satellite mission jointly run by NASA and the European Space Agency.
In comparison, two solar storms observed last week were only X1.2 flares, Brekke said.
Solar flares unleash X-ray blasts that have the ability to affect Earth-based electrical and satellite systems within minutes or hours.
One X-class burst in March 1989, for example, knocked out power for millions of people in Canada.
Flares are also often associated with coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, eruptions from the sun that, if headed our way, usual reach our planet in two to four days.
The high-energy solar winds produced by a CME can generate geomagnetic storms when they interact with Earth's magnetic field -- often increasing displays of the northern and southern lights.
"Not all CMEs trigger auroras. Several, for instance, have swept past Earth in recent days without causing widespread displays," said Tony Phillips of Spaceweather.com, which monitors cosmic conditions related to the sun and Earth.
"It all depends on the orientation of tangled magnetic fields within the electrified cloud of gas. This CME is no exception. It might cause auroras, or it might not. We will find out when it arrives."
As this CME is aimed directly toward Earth, it is possible that the geomagnetic activity will be strong enough to disrupt satellite communications or power grids. In recent years, however, satellite and utility operators have devised safeguards that usually prevent or minimize damage from solar flares and CMEs.
Space weather forecasters expect this particularly fast-moving cloud to arrive Wednesday or Thursday.
Researchers classify solar flares using three categories: C for weak, M for Moderate and X for strong. The largest flare on record, one of two known X20s, occurred on April 2, 2001.
"However, [that] one did not eject an Earth-directed CME as the one today did," Brekke said.
Space weather forecasters say this spate of strong solar flares unusual because it is not following normal patterns of solar behavior. The sun follows an 11-year cycle of activity, with the last peak being around 2000.
Earth in way of superhot gas cloud
(CNN) -- One of the largest known solar flares erupted from the sun on Tuesday, heralding a storm of supercharged particles that could hit Earth within a day or two.
The outburst was classified an X18 flare, making it the third largest on record, according to Paal Brekke, a project scientist with the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), a sun-watching satellite mission jointly run by NASA and the European Space Agency.
In comparison, two solar storms observed last week were only X1.2 flares, Brekke said.
Solar flares unleash X-ray blasts that have the ability to affect Earth-based electrical and satellite systems within minutes or hours.
One X-class burst in March 1989, for example, knocked out power for millions of people in Canada.
Flares are also often associated with coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, eruptions from the sun that, if headed our way, usual reach our planet in two to four days.
The high-energy solar winds produced by a CME can generate geomagnetic storms when they interact with Earth's magnetic field -- often increasing displays of the northern and southern lights.
"Not all CMEs trigger auroras. Several, for instance, have swept past Earth in recent days without causing widespread displays," said Tony Phillips of Spaceweather.com, which monitors cosmic conditions related to the sun and Earth.
"It all depends on the orientation of tangled magnetic fields within the electrified cloud of gas. This CME is no exception. It might cause auroras, or it might not. We will find out when it arrives."
As this CME is aimed directly toward Earth, it is possible that the geomagnetic activity will be strong enough to disrupt satellite communications or power grids. In recent years, however, satellite and utility operators have devised safeguards that usually prevent or minimize damage from solar flares and CMEs.
Space weather forecasters expect this particularly fast-moving cloud to arrive Wednesday or Thursday.
Researchers classify solar flares using three categories: C for weak, M for Moderate and X for strong. The largest flare on record, one of two known X20s, occurred on April 2, 2001.
"However, [that] one did not eject an Earth-directed CME as the one today did," Brekke said.
Space weather forecasters say this spate of strong solar flares unusual because it is not following normal patterns of solar behavior. The sun follows an 11-year cycle of activity, with the last peak being around 2000.
